Be Lifted High - Brian Johnson
I Will Exalt You - Brian & Jenn Johnson
Our Messiah Reigns - New Life Worship
Overcome - Desperation Band / Jeremy Camp
The One Who Saves - Hillsong
All To Us - Chris Tomlin
Until the End - New Creation Church
I Sing Hosanna - New Creation Church
I Am Free - Newsboy
How He Loves - David Crowder Band
Your Beloved - Mary Chikagami Lee (SOP)
Do not give your heart to what will not satisfy your heart.
On discernment: "My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore, I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone." -Thomas Merton, Thoughts in Solitude
All learning has to finish with the question "so what?"
Little children do not have feelings. They are feelings.
We are (as pastors) are in a profession where intimacy is an integral part of, so it is common and unavoidable that we will run into boundary issues. Thus, be extra cautious.
It is not "Jesus and me" and "Jesus and us". It is not "I am in Christ" but "we are in Christ."
There are different types of experiences and we all experience God differently. There is not one right way experience God.
In our culture, we appreciate "feeler" more than "thinker" when talking about experience.
When you listen, listen to what is said as well as what is not said.
In temptation, you have said a hundred "yes" before you get to that fatal "yes".
The reason we don't sin more is not because we lack the ability but we lack the opportunity.
If the church is the target of the devil's attack, the pastor's heart is the bull's eye.
Do not use the word "cannot" unless it is absolutely accurate. ("I can't come" usually is just "I won't come". If you won't, don't say you can't because you actually can.)
Stop assuming people have common sense.
"I do not mean to slander them, just that their theology is not something that the Lord has lead me to embrace."
Cultivate the difficult, but necessary art of empathetic detachment so you are available but not “available.”
Boundary violation is gratification for yourself at someone else's expense.
Pastors need to take good care of themselves because they have less people to take care of them.
Women in our culture are trained to distrust their distrust and to be nice ("I know there is something wrong but I don't want to hurt his feeling"), and that puts them in a lot of potential dangers and harms.
“The first duty of love is to listen.” -Paul Tillich
"I am human, nothing human is alien to me." -Terentius
I have always been complaining that my work was constantly interrupted, until I slowly discovered that my interruptions were my work. - Henri Nouwen
Effective mentors are proactive listeners. Listen to them before they even speak.
Sunday morning in the church lobby is where you can only neglect everyone. You cannot assume any meaningful and focused conversation can happen because there are too much distractions.
We have to live with the discomfort of being finite.
Listening is hard because it involves a loss of control.
Everyone of us is vulnerable and have the right to defend ourselves, but we don't need to do it destructively. There is a difference between defending and being defensive.
Transformation is messy and time consuming.
An unanswered question is a fine traveling companion. It sharpens your eyes for the road. -Rachel Naomi Romer
If you need to refer someone to a professional, it is better to send him/her to a good atheist than a bad Christian.
The only thing that is worse than no mentoring is bad mentoring.
As pastor we are no better than the people we serve. We are only set apart for some specific functions.
Every encounter is not between the 2 same persons from last time.
When mentoring, we have to let go of our prejudice towards our mentee accumulated from past meetings with him/her, and we have to let go of our desire for him/her to do what we want him/her to do.
Mentors should always be looking for ways to ask who you are and who do you intend to be. -Walter Wright, Mentoring
Parker Palmer, Let Your Life Speak. “Is the life I am living the same as the life that wants to live in me?”
Most problems in ministry arise from issues of character.
I am not ashamed to admit that I am ignorant in what I do not know. - Cicero
Surrender as much of yourself as you understand, to as much of God as you understand. -Sam Shoemaker
We model character, not just by being perfect but also by struggling.
There are people that we will not be the best mentor of. We have our limitations.
Never fail, whatever may befall you, be it good or evil, to keep your heart quiet and calm in the tenderness of love. -St. John of the Cross
Be their example, not their legislator. Be a healer by getting well.
The past is a foreign country. They do things differently there. -L. P. Hartley
Do not prefer your leisure to the need of the church. -St. Augustine
How we pray reveals how we think about God. Our prayer is our theology.
We cannot remain Christian without Christians.
A brother asked Abba Matoes: What shall I do? My tongue causes me trouble, and whenever I am among people, I cannot control it and I condemn them in all their good deeds and contradict them. What, therefore, shall I do? The old man answered him: If you cannot control yourself, go away from people and live alone. For this is a weakness --- Those who live together with others ought not to be square, but round, in order to turn toward all. Further, the old man said: I live alone not because of my virtue, but rather because of my weakness. You see, those who live among people are the strong ones. -Sayings of the Desert Fathers
Mentoring can be painful. When you ask a question, are you really willing to listen to their "stuff"?
Amma Synkletika (Egypt, died 400 AD): It is perilous for a person to teach who has not first been seasoned by personal experience. For if someone who owns a shabby house invites guests there, he endangers them by his neglected building. It is the same situation for someone who has not first built an inner abode. He causes danger to those who visit. By words one may convert them to salvation, but by bad personal conduct, one injures them.
Johannes Tauler (1300-1361): “An unfaithful spiritual director is like a bad hunting dog. Instead of bringing the rabbit to its master, it devours the rabbit itself.”
Generally speaking, if you want to know who you really are as distinct from who you like to think you are, keep an eye on where your feet take you. (Frederick Buechner, Wishful Thinking: A theological ABC.)
“As I am a beginner myself, I will assume that you are also beginners, and we will try to begin together” (Anthony Bloom. Beginning to Pray)
“We do not want to be beginners. But let us be convinced of the fact that we will never be anything else but beginners all our life” (Thomas Merton, Contemplative Prayer)
We never assume we know how to mentor people, no matter how much experience you have.
Realize that the Holy Spirit is always the primary mentor. We are just the instrument through which He works.
Beware of techniques. It is not about techniques and practices. It is all about relationship.
We are mentoring all the time. People are looking at us.
Our biggest mistake is trying to be more spiritual than God.
Programs are for serving the person, not the reverse.
Do not preach to the congregation that you wish you have. Preach to the congregation in front of you.
You are the key to the healthy church. Healthy church can only be led by healthy leaders.
None of us is fit for ministry. But God use broken vessel for everything.
We can be who are are and different at different times without compromising our authenticity.
The mind is a dangerous neighbourhood, don't go there alone.
Do not offer what you are not ready to give.
唐英年承認的確未有即時迅速處理，但已向專業人士表明要盡快糾正。他表示自己是適合的特首人選，懇請大家給他重新出發的機會。
但主愛更深廣
曲／詞：余子麟
Copyright 2011 Alan C. Yu. UBP ARR
誰能叫我與主愛隔絕，
患難困苦逼迫麼？
然而信靠復活的主，
這一切事我已經得勝。
曾聽信仇敵控告，
忘記了後嗣名份，
但我軟弱時主總看顧，
致令我更深信：
主的愛更深更廣，
主的愛更深更廣，
主的愛橫越高低生死，
超過現在將來；
主的愛更深更廣，
主的愛更深更廣，
沒有誰人能奪去破壞，
主的愛永遠擁抱我。
Labels: Recommend
A burning bush
June 24, 1999BC
Dear Diary,
Today, I was given rank of a shepherd. At precisely 12:00 noon, my third sheep yelled: "BAAAA!" As if to say, "Come follow me." And then she ran away! Shepherd's cane in the air, I sprinted after her. 3 minutes later, I tracked her down. She was at a narrow valley, with a single bush. Then it caught on fire! I mean, it was not! But it was! It was burning but it was not burning. I mean, it was on fire but did not burn! Then I was struck by the voice of GOD! "Take off your sandals Moses, for you are on Holy Ground. When you have gone into exile from Pharoah, I have seen your people work hard. Go back to that land where you killed a native. And say: Let my people go. And now!" But I yelled, "For I am a fat feeble old man!! I am 10000 years old - Too old!!! I am not a good talker!!!!" "I will send your brother Aaron with you." God boomed. "Still, no." I complained. So God said, "Moses, throw thy staff on thy ground." Now, I sensed a trap. I could have said no but this was God speaking to me. So I did as I was told. Then instantly, it turned into a snake. Not a snake, but a cobra!!! I freaked out, but God said, "Moses, pick up thy staff." with a shaking hand, I did so. And it turned into a staff. "Still, no." I said. "Moses, take thy hand and put it into thy collar." So I did. "Take thy hand out of thy collar." God boomed. So I did. With a ssh-shads sound, it was a thick slime that covered my fingers. "Now you have to put thy hand in collar." So I did. And... No more slime!!! "Now you have seen the power of God." God exclaimed. "Now go." So I did. Time for this entry to end. Bye bye.
THE END!
Labels: Interesting
Labels: Reflection
