By: Tonette Kellett on October 19, 2023
Black Dignity: The Struggle Against Domination by Vincent Lloyd was an interesting read for me this week. It was one of those books that I read cover to cover because I wanted to capture all that it was saying. As I reflect now on the writing, there are some aspects of the book that I…
By: Audrey Robinson on October 19, 2023
Reading Vincent W. Lloyd’s book, Black Dignity, I couldn’t help reflecting on faces, images, and events that reminded me of what black dignity looks like. I wanted to find an image that everyone would recognize, and I was able to locate a picture from the JL Zwane Memorial Church we visited in South Africa. It…
By: Jean de Dieu Ndahiriwe on October 19, 2023
Introduction: Lloyd’s excellent writing on Dignity brought new insights into the Struggle for human rights. I loved his video[1] on what he called the three conceptions of Dignity. I will share the three conceptions and conclude with the kind of Dignity that is needed for a stable, lasting, peaceful world. We live in an imperfect…
By: Kristy Newport on October 18, 2023
Who would you like your children to emulate? I have often considered this as a parent and have wanted to surround my children with good role models; without role models close at hand, I have wanted to encourage my children to read biographies of those who have loved God and endured hardship well. When Martin…
By: David Beavis on October 18, 2023
The creation story of Genesis 1-2 depicts the Creator of all known reality ordering the nonfunctional, nonordered (“formless and void”) world. The Creator then creates in his image the human representatives, Adam and Eve, to co-rule with him as his vice-regents. The divine order involved humans exercising dominion (Genesis 1:28) under the supreme reign of…
By: Sara Taylor Lattimore on October 16, 2023
I hold a worldview, a theology, a philosophy that dignity is an innate human right. That we are all created with worth and dignity. As I have observed and learned about dignity is also an action a way of being and a way of interacting with others. It is innate and yet also an intentional…
By: Audrey Robinson on October 15, 2023
RARE Leadership Introduction In a world characterized by diverse identities and ever-evolving cultural landscapes, the book RARE Leadership by Marcus Warner and Dr. Jim Wilder offers a refreshing perspective on leadership through the lens of Christian faith.[1] The authors’ core message revolves around recognizing, affirming, and nurturing the unique identities of those seeking their identity…
By: Sara Taylor Lattimore on October 14, 2023
“My boss is younger than me!” Have you ever said this or maybe heard it said by someone. This is something that I often shrugged off as a a young leader in my field, because I was thinking, “What did my age have to do with anything?”. I often thought to myself “well good for…
By: Greg McMullen on October 13, 2023
I rather enjoyed The Sound of Leadership from Jules Glanzer.[1] In this fast paced world, often we forget we are leading the orchestra. In our own ego we strive to be the best, or to satisfy the crowds, we sometimes forget we have control over the war drums pushing the ship, inspiring and encouraging the…
By: Chad McSwain on October 13, 2023
“A clergy person is more like a parent or step-parent”[1]. This was the moment I leaned in to the words of Martin Percy. Not that he lacked my attention before, but I had never heard these words applied in such a matter-of-fact way. I had said them in moments of frustration, yet now these were…
By: Daron George on October 13, 2023
There is a continuous quest for growth and development in the realm of leadership. Forbes said as of 2019 (four years ago) that, leadership development was a 366 billion dollar industry[1]. Everywhere you turn, leaders are trying to discover how to lead better. It is a journey marked by the pursuit of excellence and the…
By: Laura Fleetwood on October 12, 2023
What is the best way for our church to help people live and love like Jesus? That’s the question keeping me up at night ever since I accepted a new leadership role at Messiah titled Director of Discipleship. Not only is role new for me, it’s an entirely new role within our organization. It also…
By: Caleb Lu on October 12, 2023
“Leadership is not about being perfect. It is about being willing to learn and grow”.[1] This quote from the beginning pages of Marcus Warner and Jim Wilder’s Rare Leadership: 4 Uncommon Habits for Increasing Trust, Joy, and Engagement in the People You Lead stuck with me as I read the rest of the book and…
By: Michael O'Neill on October 12, 2023
For years, my mother made “Choose joy” a daily mantra. A farewell as I left for school or embarked on a journey of large or small scale. It was a familiar refrain… something she uttered countless times over the years and she was, and is, consistent. This daily reminder growing up kept a flame going…
By: Shonell Dillon on October 12, 2023
Introduction For as long as I can remember as a child every Friday was “Family Matters” night. The Song would start with “It’s a rare condition this day and age”. The words sang by Jesse Fredericks were explaining that family love is rare. The song writer defined the word rare in the same context that…
By: Jenny Steinbrenner Hale on October 12, 2023
In 2020, I took a rejuvenating three-month sabbatical. I was expecting profound insights to emerge over the course of this time, but at the end of my sabbatical, all I had were three simple thoughts to carry forward: 1.) Do whatever it takes to get enough sleep. 2.) Do one thing at a time, instead…
By: Tonette Kellett on October 12, 2023
In the book, Rare Leadership: 4 Uncommon Habits for Increasing Trust, Joy, and Engagement in the People You Lead, the co-authors Marcus Warner and Jim Wilder collaborate to write about maturity in leadership. [1] They have come up with the acronym R.A.R.E. to denote the four habits that will cause your emotional intelligence to “soar”,…
By: Becca Hald on October 12, 2023
Have you heard the song Give Me Your Eyes by Brandon Heath? The chorus sticks with me. Give me Your eyes for just one second Give me Your eyes so I can see Everything that I keep missin’ Give me Your love for humanity Give me Your arms for the broken-hearted The ones that are…
By: David Beavis on October 11, 2023
Not long after the invasion of Ukraine, Philip Bump of The Washington Post wrote about the isolation – both figurative and literal – of Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin. This article included pictures of Putin physically separated from people by an awkward distance that would make dialogue difficult and relational connection impossible.[1] What these pictures…
By: Kristy Newport on October 11, 2023
In Rare Leadership: 4 Uncommon Habits for Increasing Trust, Joy, and Engagement in the People You Lead by Marcus Warner and Jim Wilder, they share how fast track thinking impacts leaders and building RARE leadership practices. In chapter 10 the authors propose different practices which will help a leader endure hardship well, one being the…
