Good morning heartache, you old gloomy sight
Good morning heartache, thought we said goodbye last night
I turned and tossed until it seemed you had gone
But here you are with the dawn.
-- From "Good Morning Heartache"
I have a picture in my mind of the scene as Billie Holiday sings this song: she wakes up and, wearing her bathrobe, walks into her kitchen, makes two cups of coffee and takes a seat.
She sets one coffee in front of herself and places the other in front of an empty chair. She looks at heartache and says, "Sit down."
In an intimate place -- her home -- she meets her agony. In a space even more intimate -- her kitchen -- she offers a seat. The kitchen: where she presses her hair, cooks her food, gets midnight snacks. Where family and friends gather.
As I have matured in my ministry as a hospital chaplain, I have grown to appreciate "Good Morning Heartache."What intrigues me most is that Holiday invites the listeners to listen to themselves, to make room for their feelings and to be fully known.
Read more from Ylisse C. Bess » |
"As pastors, as leaders, we are asked to discern the place of the church in the world. We seek to discern God's vision for our communities. ... I'm learning that God's plan comes to us as we listen to the prayers of our sisters and brothers."
Read more from Isaac Villegas » |
| | FROM THE ARCHIVE: THE CONGREGATION IN THE PUBLIC SQUARE |
Jack Jezreel asks why it is that many congregations are not forming people with an understanding of the biblical vision of justice and a willingness to work to bring that vision about.
Read more from Congregations magazine from 2012 » |
In this article from Congregations magazine in 2003, author Larry Rasmussen wonders if and what responsibility the church has for the moral formation that would be enable all people to live together as part of a "world house" or "world community."
Read more from Larry Rasmussen » |
How to Lead When You Don't Know Where You're Going: Leading in a Liminal Season by Susan Beaumont
How do you lead an organization stuck between an ending and a new beginning -- when the old way of doing things no longer works but a way forward is not yet clear? Beaumont calls such in-between times liminal seasons -- threshold times when the continuity of tradition disintegrates and uncertainty about the future fuels doubt and chaos. In a liminal season it simply is not helpful to pretend we understand what needs to happen next. But leaders can still lead.
How to Lead When You Don't Know Where You're Going is a practical book of hope for tired and weary leaders who risk defining this era of ministry in terms of failure or loss. It helps leaders stand firm in a disoriented state, learning from their mistakes and leading despite the confusion. Packed with rich stories and real-world examples, Beaumont guides the reader through practices that connect the soul of the leader with the soul of the institution.
Learn more and order the book » |
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