By Brigitte Leininger
The corporate world is learning to embrace failure, turning it into a positive exploration of opportunity. This article explores the newfound mentality of what it means to fail in the secular workspace, and what that same type of failure means for the church. Is it possible to look at failure in the same way -- a source for new opportunity, or is it simply another way our sinful nature is manifested in our work?
Failure: Opportunity or Human Brokenness?
Failure. Defeat. Catastrophe. …
By Kristin Eisele
When I was seven years old my parents brought home a new set of dishes. It was awful. It was change. I cried. When we changed cars, when I had to get a new winter coat, when my favorite television program was canceled, I cried. Imagine my enthusiasm at the change required of the church in this era.
And yet, I really do want to be a part of what God is up to. Reflecting on my resistance to change along with my desire to be a part of God’s mission, I began to identify specific …
Courtney Young is a graduate of Luther Seminary - M.Div. with an emphasis in Congregational Mission and Leadership. Missional, a Millennial, and a new mother, Courtney shares her thoughts with us here:
In the spring of my senior year at Luther Seminary, I took a course called "Transforming Congregations for Mission," taught by Mary Sue Dreier. The class launched both a deep and broad conversation among my classmates and me about how to help churches sharpen their practices and theology so they …
Courtney Young is a graduate of Luther Seminary - M.Div. with an emphasis in Congregational Mission and Leadership. Missional, a Millennial, and a new mother, Courtney shares her thoughts with us here:
Last year when I was taking a class on revitalizing churches, we read Diana Butler Bass' book Christianity for the Rest of Us: How the Neighborhood Church is Transforming the Faith. Each chapter discussed one aspect of missional life or what she calls "signposts of renewal." The chapter that …
Courtney Young is a graduate of Luther Seminary - M.Div. with an emphasis in Congregational Mission and Leadership. Missional, a Millennial, and a new mother, Courtney shares her thoughts with us here:
Two observations I've had since I am not being paid to be at church on Sunday morning:
First, Sunday morning is the only day of the week that my husband, a pharmacist, is guaranteed not to work. It is the only day we have to sleep in together, to have a slow morning, and a big breakfast. It …