Last month, my wife and I, with others from the Center for Congregational Health, attended a retreat in Northern Ireland focused on peacemaking and reconciliation. What I didn’t expect was how much it would teach me about helping congregations navigate uncertainty and change. Below are five lessons that I will carry with me as I …
Ten ways I encourage my coaching clients that can be used in any relationships.
Dear Shepherds of Sacred Communities, Let me start with a confession: I used to think strategic planning was a cold, corporate process—something reserved for Fortune 500 boardrooms, not sanctuaries. I saw the color-coded charts, the mission statements buried in binders, the timelines that never got followed. And I thought: There must be a better way. …
On March 3, I had to privilege of participating in an advocacy panel for Piedmont Virginia Community College’s Civic Engagement Conference. Theme of the discussion was “Power in Numbers: A Panel Discussion on Advocacy Organizations and Activism.”
On January 26, 2021, Holly Hollman and I were invited to a Monticello Live Stream panel discussion about “Legacies of Religious Freedom” moderated by John Ragota.
Last November, the Charlottesville Clergy Collective, a group of interfaith leaders, wanted to do something concrete to support voters during the election season. The concern was real. After what happened during the “summer of hate” in 2017, and with reports of possible voter intimidation on election day, the idea was simple: show up at voting …
Here are seven lessons I’m learning from my African American friends about having racial conversations with them using my coaching skills.
Many leaders and staff dread staff evaluations. How to conduct one in a human-focused and humane way that enlivens the organization and staff.
We do not erase history when Confederate monuments come down. We want to dismantle a one-sided telling of history that glorifies the enslavement of black bodies and communities as a way to perpetuate present racial injustice.
Many pastors are asking themselves: “Am I enough?” during this pandemic. This article offers some self-assessment questions for moving forward.
