Apologies That Work
July 31, 2007 |
One thing we as women leaders need to ask ourselves is, Are we to follow traditional models or seek to break new ground? If we’re interested in breaking new ground, I think one of the best ways to integrate our instinctive feminine strengths into our leadership is by setting a positive example with by the transparency of our apologies.
Isn’t it sad that apologies are often seen as a sign of weakness and associated with the “weaker” sex? Yet, it takes great strength to humble yourself and offer the gift of a meaningful apology.
Scripture instructs that whether we are the offender or the offended, the onus is on us to seek restoration in our relationships.
Continue reading...Posted by Caryn Rivadeneira on July 31, 2007 | Comments (8)
The Society Page
July 27, 2007 |
I inherited an old trunk that sat in my grandma’s basement. It had belonged to the generation before, who had used it to bring their possessions across the sea from Sweden. It sits in my dining room. It smells a little musty, but I treasure it as a link to my heritage.
I was thrilled to receive the trunk, but even happier when I opened it and saw my bonus surprise. The bottom was lined with pages of a newspaper from May 14, 1912. I framed these pages and hung them on a wall in my house. Whenever I look at these pages, I find something amusing. They’re full of advertisements for remedies to cure everything from kidney trouble to headaches, dandruff, and excessive perspiration. They contain news stories that remind me of the fleeting nature of some of the things that seem newsworthy today. They also remind me that some things never change. But Page 7, the Society page, makes me a little sad.
Posted by Amy Simpson on July 27, 2007 | Comments (10)
Bringing Harry Potter to Church
July 23, 2007 |
If you’re not thrilled to know that this past weekend, I joined millions of other Harry Potter fans around the globe and sequestered myself from media, friends, and family (well, they were around me) and spent hour upon hour anxiously turning pages to discover the secrets I’ve waited years to learn, you’re not going to appreciate this post.
And if you don’t think it was right that I brought my kids with me early Friday morning to get a wristband to secure my place in line at the local Borders so I could snag my copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows as close to its release at midnight as possible, then you’re really not going to like what I write next.
You may want to stop reading right here. (Attention fans: Don’t worry. No spoiling ahead!)
Posted by Caryn Rivadeneira on July 23, 2007 | Comments (61)
Full-Brained Leadership
July 20, 2007 |
The kick-off presenter at Willow Creek’s 2007 Arts Conference was a renowned photographer. Twenty-some years with National Geographic, Dewitt Jones wowed the audience with his photos – people and nature in rare and breathtaking candor. As the photos scrolled, he spoke of falling in love with life. Finding the extraordinary in the ordinary. Immersing oneself in the moment at hand and being fully, unabashedly aware.
To a few leaders looking for “the download,” Dewitt’s message may have seemed like a disconnect. They may have come for the latest trends in worship music. Tips to tweak their worship sets. Lessons in smooth segues. Places to get good drama scripts. New video and audio technologies.
But Dewitt wasn’t speaking to any of this.
Continue reading...Posted by Caryn Rivadeneira on July 20, 2007 | Comments (5)
Food for Thought
July 19, 2007 |
“I’ve had no control over so much of what’s happened in the last five to six years. When Eva was 17, she ended up in an abusive relationship with a man seven years older than she. When she was 18, she was driving and had an accident with tragic consequences for her and for others. Then, after her accident, Eva got pregnant. Our son, Ethan, struggled with substance abuse, for which he received counseling. I actually remember walking down the hall at MOPS at one point thinking, If I quit, will Satan leave my kids alone? As if that would have changed all that had happened!”
--Elisa Morgan, CEO of MOPS International/Fulfill
Continue reading...Posted by Caryn Rivadeneira on July 19, 2007 | Comments (10)
The Genderless Gifts
July 17, 2007 |
GFL: What do women need to know about preaching or communicating gifts?
Jill Briscoe: I think they need to know everything men need to know. And I think that’s something that needs to be said because there seems to be a growing awareness that women need equipping for the speaking. They need equipping for the speaking skills to use in church and mission, but there are a lot of programs beginning to be crafted for them that don’t start with the communication basics that both men and women need.
And I think what we need to realize is that speaking, teaching, preaching are not gendered gifts. I don’t believe gifts are gendered. Therefore, women need all the training you get in a seminary or other teaching institute.
Posted by Caryn Rivadeneira on July 17, 2007 | Comments (10)
Who’s Holding Up Your Arms?
July 13, 2007 |
Several years ago, when I was just beginning in ministry, I conducted a workshop at a women’s retreat on the doctrine of vocation—and I was petrified. It was the first time I put together a comprehensive teaching session, the first time I delivered more than a 15 minute speech, and the first time I realized the value of having solid people to surround me when in a leadership position.
Before the workshop began, I shared my concerns with two special women: Ardath and Nancy. Ardath, ever the prayer warrior, prayed with me during the hour-long drive to the retreat center and Nancy, a longtime friend, offered me the support of her presence by sitting in on the workshop. Through them, I was able to find the strength and encouragement I needed to move forward through a moment of trepidation to do what God had called me to do.
Posted by Caryn Rivadeneira on July 13, 2007 | Comments (6)
Me at My Best
July 10, 2007 |
I was recently confronted with a former version of myself. I spent last weekend at a reunion of former staff and campers at the Bible camp I attended for nine years and worked at for six. This camp is the place where I learned how to live out my faith. It’s the place where I developed most of my most enduring friendships. It’s the place where I discovered that I could lead people. More than any other experience in my life, my years at camp made me the person I am today. It is a place so dear to my heart that it physically hurts when I leave.
It was fantastic to spend a couple of days with people I hadn’t seen in years. People I’d known as young children were there with young children of their own. I introduced my wonderful husband to the guy I had crush on when I was 17. A woman who had been one of my former campers told me she had gone into full-time youth ministry in part because she wanted to impact students the way I had impacted her. With every hug and remembered story, I kept thinking, This was me at my best—funny, confident, creative.
But in the days since, as I’ve replayed my conversations with old friends, I’ve been struck by something:
Posted by Caryn Rivadeneira on July 10, 2007 | Comments (3)
The Antidote for Darkness
July 6, 2007 |
She sat in the second row. Long brown hair. A high-school look to her, and yet, her eyes belied way too many journeys to fit into a 16-year-old time frame.
I was teaching a class about ministry and dark places. Not so much about ministry in dark places, but about the darkness we and/or our spouses bring with us into ministry. I started the hour by saying, “Unfortunately, I’m qualified to teach this class.” (For more about that, see my Leadership Journal article.)
Posted by Caryn Rivadeneira on July 6, 2007 | Comments (25)
Following the Leader
July 3, 2007 |
If it weren’t too long for the allotted space, I would’ve titled this post, “Everything I Needed to Know about Leadership I Learned from my Son’s Preschool Teacher.” And after two years of watching Ruth Harkema, this phenomenal leader, at work, I’d mean it. Of course, I knew a thing or two about leadership before I saw this gifted woman using her skills, but watching her style up close and personal—along with seeing the impact she has on those kids she leads—cemented everything good I had known before and taught me a few tricks I hadn’t quite captured.
So what makes her so impressive? Simple: She can lead a group of 20 wild and wiggly or worn-out and wooly four-year-olds down a school hallway in a single file, quietly. Can you? I know I’d sooner lead a group of inmates over a prison wall than attempt that feat.
Continue reading...Posted by Caryn Rivadeneira on July 3, 2007 | Comments (6)
