Thank you, Richard. The best, accessible book on the subject is Lewis Smedes' The Art of Forgiving. Forgiveness is giving up your right to hurt them back. Reconciliation is restoring the relationship, and starts the process of rebuilding trust.
Should be good! Let me add in the context of the above quote from Michael's book that the church's first mistake in the book of Acts is the apostles(!) expecting the risen Christ to reduce God's Kingdom to political nationalism (1:6). The church has been making this mistake ever since. Today is no different.
Which ministry evaluation tool to use depends on the kind of ministry to be evaluated. If the ministry is led by a paid staff, the tool to use will be different than one managed by volunteers. Staff evaluations must have necessary checks-and-balances built into the a Council-approved process that is mutually transparent; that is, it holds both the evaluator and the one evaluated accountable for their respective roles in the process. A volunteer-managed ministry evaluation is simpler, Council led, and essentially requires the design of right diagnostic questions.
To evaluate a ministry, Jay, I would design four, perhaps five, diagnostic questions, assemble the stakeholders, and through a well-thought out circle exercise work the questions.
Thank you, Tom, for your blog. MLK Jr was a remarkable human being, a courageous Christian, a great American, an exceptional leader, and deeply flawed like the rest of us. Having done a lot of reading by and about him, I highly recommend The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr, edited by Clayborne Carson.
Again this week my wife & I worshiped online at The Good Shepherd Church NYC at 8:00 a.m. PST, and online at our church, Hope Community CRC, Surrey, BC, at 11:00. As usual, Pastor Dave Groen hit it out of the park! So grateful to have you as our pastor, Dave.
Posted in: COD Highlights - October 2022
The COD met last October. Why are the highlights of the COD meeting of October 2022 posted, rather than of the latest meeting?
Posted in: What Resources Helped You Dive Into the Topic of Forgiveness?
Lewis Smedes, The Art of Forgiveness, is a modest volume that hits the nail on the head on the duty and meaning of forgiveness.
Posted in: Distinguishing Forgiveness from Reconciliation
Thank you, Richard. The best, accessible book on the subject is Lewis Smedes' The Art of Forgiving. Forgiveness is giving up your right to hurt them back. Reconciliation is restoring the relationship, and starts the process of rebuilding trust.
Posted in: Conversation With Michael Goheen on Missionary Ecclesiology (Thursday, Dec. 9)
Should be good! Let me add in the context of the above quote from Michael's book that the church's first mistake in the book of Acts is the apostles(!) expecting the risen Christ to reduce God's Kingdom to political nationalism (1:6). The church has been making this mistake ever since. Today is no different.
Posted in: Ministry Evaluation Tool?
Which ministry evaluation tool to use depends on the kind of ministry to be evaluated. If the ministry is led by a paid staff, the tool to use will be different than one managed by volunteers. Staff evaluations must have necessary checks-and-balances built into the a Council-approved process that is mutually transparent; that is, it holds both the evaluator and the one evaluated accountable for their respective roles in the process. A volunteer-managed ministry evaluation is simpler, Council led, and essentially requires the design of right diagnostic questions.
Posted in: Ministry Evaluation Tool?
To evaluate a ministry, Jay, I would design four, perhaps five, diagnostic questions, assemble the stakeholders, and through a well-thought out circle exercise work the questions.
Posted in: What Books Are You Currently Reading?
The January 6th Report, by the Select Congressional Committee
Loren Cunningham, The Book that Transforms Nations
Neil deGrasse Tyson, Starry Messenger: Cosmic Perspectives on Civilization
SM Houghton (ed.), George Whitefield’s Journals
Posted in: Best Books You Read in 2021
Where the Light Fell: A Memoir - Philip Yancey
When God Interrupts: Finding New Life Through Unwanted Change - M Craig Barnes
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration - Isabel Wilkerson
Posted in: Martin Luther King Jr., Compassion Fatigue, and God the Insomniac
Thank you, Tom, for your blog. MLK Jr was a remarkable human being, a courageous Christian, a great American, an exceptional leader, and deeply flawed like the rest of us. Having done a lot of reading by and about him, I highly recommend The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr, edited by Clayborne Carson.
Posted in: Where Did You Worship This Past Sunday?
The Good Shepherd Church New York City at 8:00 a.m. (PST) online, then our own congregation, Hope Community CRC, Surrey, BC, at 11:00 online.
Posted in: Where Did You Worship This Past Sunday?
Again this week my wife & I worshiped online at The Good Shepherd Church NYC at 8:00 a.m. PST, and online at our church, Hope Community CRC, Surrey, BC, at 11:00. As usual, Pastor Dave Groen hit it out of the park! So grateful to have you as our pastor, Dave.
Posted in: Where Did You Worship This Past Sunday?
Thanks for sharing this. I listen to this excellent sermon.