Savoring is the act of enjoying and reveling in what is already there—of highlighting the positive experiences and tuning into the sensory experience of it all. A recent study found that savoring plays a role in enhancing overall psychological resilience. Savoring—tuning into what we enjoy in our lives—can help us to build our resilience over time. We are invited to build into our lives a practice of noticing what is in front of us—what we might savor. Perhaps there are opportunities for all of us to savor what is already there, already in front of us, instead of adding more to our to-do lists. By doing so, we strengthen our resilience. [Photo by Lesia and Serhii Artymovych on Unsplash]

Plug into community where you already are, and experience the benefits of slowing down, showing up, and enjoying yourself in community spaces where you are not “in charge.” [Photo by Bree Anne on Unsplash]

A Task Force of the Presbytery of Long Island worked with LeaderWise to craft new values, mission, and vision for the Presbytery, uncovering obstacles and taking into consideration who is typically not at the decision-making table, who is even skeptical about the usefulness of the Presbytery over all. Read their story in this week's Good News article.

When it comes to AI such as ChatGPT, we are all navigating uncharted territory. Are there benefits to using AI to write sermons? What are the drawbacks from writing a sermon using AI? This article discusses a real-life scenario and offers 5 questions to consider in using AI as a spiritual leader. [Photo by Solen Feyissa on Unsplash.]

Building a culture of connection is an admirable goal. It’s also a risk. Too much time isolated from one another during the pandemic has also made our social skills rusty. Does our desire for connection, belonging, and social change outweigh our anxiety? Many of our faith traditions have wisdom for the newbies among us. Consider what from your faith tradition and values helps you acknowledge discomfort and also lean into new connections. Then, anchor yourself in small movements towards your intention of community. Here are 4 ways to practice anchoring. [Photo by Sigmund on Unsplash]

Without promising easy answers, or giving a one-size-fits-all approach, CrossForm is designed to help congregational leaders face the challenges of being communities of faith today. Feedback from the 13 faith communities who have participated in CrossForm confirmed the value and impact CrossForm can have. If you and your congregation are trying to figure out what the questions are and discover new frameworks and tools to understand the world in which we live, CrossForm may be for you. [Photo by Tim Marshall on Unsplash ]

Flourishing in retirement and life. Courage is the ability to face our fears and challenges and act, moving forward in spite of them. [Photo by Federico Giampieri on Unsplash]

LeaderWise invites you to go on a journey of discovery. What transformation might evolve if you were to engage in an experiment to combine self-awareness, vulnerability, and courage?

What does courageous leadership look like in times such as these? Throughout the month of April, LeaderWise will be reflecting upon this question. While we will definitely share definitions and concepts, as well as the research behind them, we will also center the stories of everyday folks. For the stories behind the images of courage teach us the way. [Photo by Marion S. Trikosko 1963 Library of Congress]

"Am I safe here?" LeaderWise has been hearing this question in every corner of our work: Am I safe to bring my full self here? Is it okay here to question or disagree? If I share with you my real thoughts, will it be counted against me? Will I be marginalized or cast out? Is LeaderWise a safe place, given that so many spaces today are unsafe? We want to assure you that LeaderWise is committed to helping all clients feel safe.
Find LeaderWise's Welcome and Inclusion statement here

We at LeaderWise have noticed how bombarded we all are with bad news. Organizations losing necessary resources. Faith communities divided. Another house of worship closing. In spite of the news, LeaderWise witnesses good news stories all of the time. As consultant Becca Fletcher reminded us, there are congregations seeding and harvesting little slices of heaven in every corner of our world. We just don’t hear about them often. This year LeaderWise wants to change by sharing the stories of hope we are seeing. 

Today, we travel to Eau Claire, Wisconsin…

Regular sessions of Reflective Pastoral Supervision (RPS) have been a game-changer both for my sense of well-being and my practice of ministry. My reflective supervisor is trained in processes that help me reflect in creative ways on my experiences, emotions, challenges, and commitments in my ministry. We look at how my work is impacting others…and how it’s impacting me. I meet with her monthly for a deep-dive exploration of some aspect of my ministry practice that I’d value getting some insight into. It might be navigating the various expectations at play in a situation or exploring the dynamics of an encounter that felt a bit off. This month I explored ways I might support the learning and growth of someone I’m mentoring. I decide what I want to explore, and my reflective supervisor and I then figure out how to approach the topic in a way that can surface assumptions, spur new lines of thinking, and generate new and helpful insights. We listen for God’s voice in the here-and-now of the session and for the movement of the Spirit in the there-and-then of my ministry setting.

Beginning with Spiritual Direction in the midst of a conflictual situation helps to create a sense of perspective from which we understand that we as leaders are God’s vessels to help accomplish the work of healing that needs to be done in a conflictual context. [Photo by Attentie Attentie on Unsplash]

Creating meaningful connections to others might feel as though it is one-more-thing. Yet, connecting to other humans is helpful and beneficial for our well-being. [Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash]

Monthly 3Practices Circles give faith leaders both practices and principles for listening across our differences, building trust, and discovering community. These Circles provide safe and fair containers for practicing a disciplined curiosity with one another.

If you practice mindfulness, then you stand the chance of noticing when your body is going into fight or flight mode and you can grab control, slow it down, and choose your response. LeaderWise offerings include opportunities for you to work on your emotional intelligence (which can help with self-awareness and self-regulation) and your conflict skills (on February 25th!) or you can enter into a 1:1 relationship through reflective pastoral supervision, coaching, or therapy. [Photo by Ashley Batz on Unsplash]

My LeaderWise colleagues and I have worked with many, many churches across the country who are desperate to reverse the trend of declining membership and dwindling budgets. They are constantly searching for the perfect program or offering that will bring people streaming through their doors. This is what’s known as the attractional model – believing that they can create a program, a worship service, or an outreach program that will be so valuable or interesting that people will be drawn to the church and will return it to the glory days when the building was full to bursting on a Sunday morning. [Photo by Benjamin Davies on Unsplash]

Ministry contexts also have a life cycle. The times of transition within ministry and/or society, for that matter, can cause people to feel fearful and anxious, anticipating an upcoming loss. The anxiety of “not enough” becomes prevalent. Some are experiencing diminishing resources in their denominations, ministry contexts, churches, etc. (think finances and people). The lack of resources has produced a sense of fear about the survival of their particular ministry and the church at large. As is common, the decline becomes the focus; clinging and grasping become the tools used to try to assuage the fear of the looming possible outcome.

I wonder how ministry contexts and faith communities might shift their perspective to view the resources they have as “enough.”