Secret Women's Business

Once upon a time, pastoral visits involved reading the bible to people, praying for them, and perhaps sharing communion with the grieving, the sick, or the distressed. The world of pastoral care underwent a significant paradigm shift when insights gained from psychology and counselling were integrated into pastoral care training. As well as providing spiritual resources of prayer and scripture, pastors began to intentionally utilize pastoral listening. Through the discipline and grace-filled gift of listening, comfort, release, clarity and new insights can emerge. This has breathed a helpful dynamic into the spiritual ministry of pastoral care. I’m happy to go out on a limb and claim that coaching training provides the skills needed to embark on a paradigm shift in exercising Christian leadership. It is a paradigm shift that sits perfectly with Churches of Christ ethos on the priesthood of all believers; the belief that fruitful ministry emerges from the Spirit of God stirring up spiri...

'The ego wants to ensure us that the things we do are all significant and worthy of our attention, that this event will make me important...Our activities become attempts at self validation and little life merit badges....Christian life has little to do with me doing anyhting right. It has everything to do with falling in love with a Lover who always does everything right. What I love is that Lover and not my own accomplishments; nor am I surprised or unduly humiliated by my own failures.' Richard Rohr.

It's only six weeks now til the combined Baptist, Churches of Christ... oh, and anyone else who wants to blow in... women's conference. "Arrrgghh" I scream... no, really, it's pretty much under control. In my own incredibly biased opinion, this will be brilliant... fantastic godly speakers (Helen Meyer and Nicole Connor) and workshop leaders (Di Feldman, Sandy Jones, Karen Wilson, Kim Mietke, Lisa Jenkins... oh, and yours truly, but modesty forbids...) The workshops will be highly practical to equip people to implement something straight away, so it won't be just a talk fest. Anyway, if you'd like to look at the details, you can check out here . I hope to see you there!

The following article has been sourced from: http://www.boundless.org/2005/articles/a0001154.cfm# Today, there are no socially prescribed forms of conduct that help guide young men and women in the direction of matrimony.... People still get married — though later, less frequently, more hesitantly, and, by and large, less successfully. For the great majority, the way to the altar is uncharted territory: It's every couple on its own bottom, without a compass, often without a goal. Those who reach the altar seem to have stumbled upon it by accident.... Then and now Until what seems like only yesterday, young people were groomed for marriage, and the paths leading to it were culturally well set out, at least in rough outline. In polite society, at the beginning of this century, our grandfathers came a-calling and a-wooing at the homes of our grandmothers, under conditions set by the woman, operating from strength on her own turf. A generation later, courting couples began to go ...

I have been a "quiet" blogger on Secret Women's Business, but have had my blogging focus directed to " Exiles ": The institutional church in the Western World has been in a long period of decline... judged by church attendance at least. The reasons for this decline are many and complex. I have a particular interest in the rise of "non-institutional" expressions of church life... house churches, workplace churches, and the like. I also have a pastoral heart for those who have left churches for reasons that have been painful for them... conflict, clashes, spiritual abuse, inappropriate pastoral care, a failure to address serious and legitimate questions and needs. In response, I've been experimenting with the idea of a website that explores the multitude of reasons people drift from "institutional" churches. If you know of anyone who might find this conversation interesting, maybe you could let them know! It's not all dire news for the ...

OK, it's been a good day for funny emails.... here's another one... These are from a book called Disorder in the American Courts, and are things people actually said in court, word for word, taken down and now published by court reporters that had the torment of staying calm while these exchanges were actually taking place. ATTORNEY: What was the first thing your husband said to you that morning? WITNESS: He said, 'Where am I, Cathy?' ATTORNEY: And why did that upset you? WITNESS: My name is Susan! ATTORNEY: What gear were you in at the moment of the impact? WITNESS: Gucci sweats and Reeboks. ATTORNEY: Are you sexually active? WITNESS: No, I just lie there. ATTORNEY: This myasthenia gravis, does it affect your memory at all? WITNESS: Yes .. ; ATTORNEY: And in what ways does it affect your memory? WITNESS: I forget. ATTORNEY: You forget? Can you give us an example of something you forgot? ATTORNEY: Do you know if your daughter has ever been involved in voodoo? WITNESS...