By: Mitch Arbelaez on March 21, 2014
As I read this weeks book Bad Religion: How We Became a Nation of Heretics, I was awed by the author’s writing ability, not simply by his ingenious craftiness of sentence structure but by his incredible ability of synthesis – taking many historical facts both positive and negative and reconstructing in a few pages the…
By: Carol McLaughlin on March 21, 2014
Heresy is a word that seems to be thrown about with too much ease, almost like a ball tossed in the air for a tennis serve. Struck with passion and force it is upon its opponent quickly resulting in a defensive response. A noticeable similarity between tennis and heresy is in the volley. Yet surprisingly…
By: Ashley Goad on March 20, 2014
I am the ultimate optimist. The glass is always half-full. See a basket of lemons? Let’s make lemonade. And there is always a silver lining, or something to learn from a difficult situation, even when there seems to be no hope at all. Some may call me naïve or an idealist, but I pray to…
By: Richard Volzke on March 20, 2014
The rise and decline of the church’s influence in the 20th century was affected by various factors and trends of that day. Political, economic, geopolitical, and inner self-awareness all effected how Christianity was viewed in society, either positively or negatively. Douthat, in his book Bad Religion, explains that every human being is religious and believes…
By: Deve Persad on March 20, 2014
What would your response be, if you walked into a car dealership and the salesperson, instead of telling you all the reasons why a particular make or model would benefit you, lacked knowledge, seemed indifferent or was continually tending to other tasks while under the pretense of listening to your needs? Chances are that you…
By: rhbaker275 on March 15, 2014
On the one hand, Making Room for Leadership by MaryKate Morse[1] is a challenging read. One cannot read the book without being introspective and evaluative of one’s own leadership. We see ourselves; we are confronted with misconceptions, ignored inadequacies, and confronted with the need for change. On the other hand, Morse writes with interminable clarity…
By: Stefania Tarasut on March 15, 2014
Book: Making Room for Leadership by MaryKate Morse Leadership is a skill to be learned and a gift that must be stewarded properly. Without intentional learning and diligent stewardship leadership can, and more often then not it is harmful to the leader and hurtful to the people being led. What struck me the in reading…
By: Richard Volzke on March 15, 2014
Nature of Influence Leaders influence others more than they influence themselves. Just because people follow you, doesn’t mean you are a leader. Leadership involves stewardship of one’s own physical being and the physical being of others. [1] Morse’s book, Making Room for Leadership: Power, Space and Influence, provides a thorough overview of how one can…
By: John Woodward on March 14, 2014
As I read MaryKate Morse’s book Making Room for Leadership: Power, Space and Influence, one person kept coming to mind: Roy Weece. He was a man greatly respected and highly influential, who exuded personal warmth that made one feel special in his presence. I first met him thirty years ago during a time in my…
By: Michael Badriaki on March 14, 2014
The title of this piece kept rolling in my fore front of my mind as I read MaryKate Morse’s book Making Room for Leadership, power, space and influence. There is a plethora of literature on leadership on the market and shelves, some of which I have consulted and others not yet; but I was captivated…
By: Mitch Arbelaez on March 14, 2014
My wife and I have run several small groups: youth, young married, singles, leaders, parents, perspective missionaries, and adults who feel they are overwhelmed with life. Oh, that last one is just us…never mind. Anyway, we love to do one particular small group exercise that unknowingly reveals a lot about each person in the group.…
By: Liz Linssen on March 14, 2014
Morse’s book is a Godsend. As a female minister in the throes of church planting, the practical wisdom and exercises she offers in dealing with leadership challenges such as power issues, emotional team players, and my own blind spots are the words of a wise sage I’ve been looking for. I love her book! The…
By: Miriam Mendez on March 14, 2014
I have always been intrigued by the story of Warren Harding. Some will recognize this name because he was the 29th President of the United States. The story I’m talking about is the one told by Malcolm Gladwell in his book Blink. Harding, a newspaper editor who later became an Ohio State Senator, is described…
By: Julie Dodge on March 14, 2014
(Disclaimer: This blog is more of a reflection than critique of MaryKate Morse’ book, Making Room for Leadership: Power, Space and Influence[i]. Thank you, MaryKate, for the opportunity and framework.) I’ve been asked to serve in leadership positions throughout much of my adult life. In my twenties, I had it going on. I started and…
By: Bill Dobrenen on March 14, 2014
Midterm grades are often eye-opening experiences for my students. Some are doing well; others not so well. And although they probably know where their grades stand, it is another thing altogether when they see an “F” on their midterm grade report. I approached one of my students this week who was failing my English composition…
By: Carol McLaughlin on March 14, 2014
I have good memories of playing in sandboxes when I was growing up. In particular I recall playing at the neighbors house down the street. I do not recall the sandbox being very large in size, but somehow there was room for five to eight boys and girls to dig tunnels for our matchbox sized…
By: Ashley Goad on March 13, 2014
The two men I admire most throughout all time in all the world are my Savior, Jesus Christ and my dad, William Goad. Dr. MaryKate Morse wrote about both of them in Making Room for Leadership: Power, Space and Influence. After weeks of capitalism, consumerism, Protestantism and Calvinism, Morse’s personal stories intermingled with practical application…
By: Deve Persad on March 13, 2014
It would be of little surprise to know, to those who are familiar with our family, that when it comes to preparing for a family vacation, my wife takes care of most of the details. She’s actually quite amazing at it. From food to clothing that we’ll need to take, to making sure our little…
By: Miriam Mendez on March 9, 2014
This week marks the beginning of Lent. For many of us, we understand Lent as a time of sacrifice and deprivation. It is a time of “giving up” stuff, habits and patterns, eating chocolate, drinking coffee, soda, watching television, limiting our internet time, withdrawing from playing solitaire, doing less shopping at the mall, and the…
By: Richard Volzke on March 9, 2014
Religious Symbolism and the Church Miller’s book, Consuming Religion, summed up the consumer driven culture of many Christian denominations and theologies found in our world today Churches and Christian non-profit organizations have experienced great wealth and membership growth when they have been able to meet the demands of their constituents. This can be both positive…
