Center - Amazon Web Services

This journal is brought to you by LEAD.

It includes prompts and space to reflect on centering through:

Scripture and prayer Clarifying Purpose Understanding Core Beliefs

Learn more about waking up at waytolead.org.

Journal

By Lynn Willis and Peggy Hahn

Center ...with all your soul

A personal pilgrimage follow-ing

2 copyright © LEAD 2017

copyright © LEAD 2017 47

The Wake Up Process…

The journal is designed for the spiritual pilgrimage of centering in God through

scripture and prayer, your purpose and core values, and God’s call to diversity..

The steps of the Wake Up process invite you to

center and grow deeper in your faith through spiritual practices including ancient prayer

practices and rituals. Following the movement of the Holy Spirit is an act of discernment and

often involves sacrifice. Those on the journey are encouraged to remember the saints who

have come before—and those that will follow.

More information on this process can be found at waytolead.org. Check out this ten step

process: Step 1: Centered in God’s Mission

Step 2: Centering through Scripture and Prayer Step 3: Understanding Core Values Step 4: Understanding Core Beliefs

Step 5: Understanding Core Convictions Step 6: A Clear Purpose

Step 7: Understanding Core Practices Step 8: Waking Up to God’s Call to Diversity

Step 9: Confirming Draft Purpose Statement Step 10: Alignment and Evaluation


Notes


Center with all your Soul

A journal to accompany the Wake Up process for leaders who want to follow the Holy Spirit into the world.

Brought to you by LEAD Living every day as disciples


This is our watch and leadership makes all the difference.

You and I are called to lead the Christian movement forward in our own small way—rethinking worn paths and discovering new trails.

LEAD has identified four Growth Indicators as vital behaviors for leaders. While there are many things leaders can do, LEAD’s research has discovered some specific behaviors with the power to shape and grow both personal faith and congregations. These behaviors can effectively shift the mindset of leaders and prepare faith communities for leadership in a changing world. This is different from the usual process of setting goals or identifying outcomes. These vital behaviors produce results that are contextually relevant based on leadership and location. By practicing these four behaviors, leaders will embark on a faith pilgrimage toward a future we are unable to fully imagine right now. LEAD believes everyone and every congregation can grow. Growth is a choice that recognizes Christian leadership is really discipleship, with leaders growing other leaders. Our research indicates that the difference between growing and stalled leaders and faith communities rests in how these Growth Indicators are expressed in behaviors.


How has this pilgrimage changed

your perceptions of God, God’s

mission, and God’s people?

Step 10: A

lign

men

t and

Evaluatio

n


Use this page to sum up how you

feel now that you have finished

the Wake Up Process.

It’s been a long, enlightening, and sometimes difficult pilgrimage. Consider if you are in need of a rest or if you are chomping at the bit to do more learning and thinking.

Step

10:

Ali

gn

men

t an

d E

valu

atio

n


These specific adaptive practices will help leaders shape the path from a beloved church in decline to one with renewed deep, bold, consequential faith growing out of the waters of baptism. The Growth Indicators as vital behaviors are:

Listen Center

Explore Connect

This Center...with All Your Soul Journal is part of an overall strategy to help leaders Wake Up more fully, aligning their own lives and their congregation’s life with God’s mission. It is an effort to catch up to some of what the Holy Spirit is doing in our changing world. As an organization, LEAD is prepared to accompany leaders through this process. For more information on the four Growth Indicators or to learn more about the changing landscape of

leadership, we recommend reading The Sacred Valley, a guide for growing leaders with a deep, bold, consequential faith by Peggy Hahn.


Center… with all your soul

For people who are choosing to grow, each step in this journal will nudge, push, challenge, and encourage you to listen more carefully to God speaking to you through others. Think of this as a pilgrimage—a sacred journey. This Center...With All Your Soul Journal is a way for you to look at the steps in the Wake Up Process as a personal reflection rather than through the congregational lens of your Centering team. We know most people are too busy to write in a journal every day. We also know that people who want to grow deeper in their faith will make time to process their feelings in conversation, on social media, digitally, or on paper because that is how they will make meaning of what they experience. Use this time to reflect and react to what you have heard and learned and discussed in whatever way works best for you...writing, drawing, doodling, singing, chanting...all are responses to the Spirit’s lead. We pray that your personal insights will enhance your relationship with God, with your family, and with your community. Buen Camino! Good Journey!


Use this page to think about and

write an “elevator speech,” a

short explanation of what you

have been doing as part of the

Wake Up Team that you can share

when you are asked.

Step 9: C

on

firmin

g th

e Draft P

urp

ose Statem

ent


Use this page to examine how you

feel when someone criticizes you.

Have a plan in mind if you receive some negative input about your hard work. Write some sentences that you can rehearse that will thank the person for taking time to respond and let them know you will consider what they said.

Step

9: C

on

firm

ing

th

e D

raft

Pu

rpo

se S

tate

men

t


We each have a Faith Story that is shaped

by God moving through our life experiences. The joys, pains, and sorrows of your life; the people you encounter and that encounter you; the places and cultures where you were born, live, and grow; your response to all of this makes your story unique. There is no one on the planet with exactly your

story. It is your own God-given version of life.

Your story influences your particular point of view. It is the way you understand what is going on around you. You can think about this as your own interpretation of reality because we each look at life through the lens of our own story.

Not only do you have a story but your story also has you! Your point of view is only one angle of vision. Your interpretation of reality. No more right or wrong than someone else’s—just more familiar to you because it is part of your very being. Yet your story doesn’t have to stop there. You have the capacity to engage another person’s story. More than that, you can be influenced by their story so that your story is shaped, maybe even shared mutually, and re-formed. This happens all the time without you even noticing these shapers—through media, friends and family, just to name a few.

This Center… with All Your Soul Journal is an invitation to grow your Faith Story. This is an intentional process of moving from where you are right now to a wider story. It is a willingness to be open to God moving not just in your own life but in the lives of others. To find a larger view of reality.


How did you feel writing your

faith story?

Spend some time examining how you felt as you were writing and presenting it, and how you feel about it now.

Step

1: C

ente

red

in G

od

’s M

issi

on


What opportunities do you see to

be more like the kingdom of god?

How does the language in your Purpose and Core Values reflect this inclusiveness?

Step 8: W

aking

up

to G

od

’s Call to

Diversity


Is this call to diversity easy or

difficult for you? Why?

Step

8: W

akin

g u

p t

o G

od

’s C

all t

o D

iver

sity


What are your reactions after

experiencing Centering Prayer?

If you did Centering Prayer in the company of others, try praying this way alone. In what ways does it feel the same? Or different?

Step 1: C

entered

in G

od

’s Missio

n



experiencing Ignatian

Contemplation?

If you used the example story in the Guide, try Ignatian Contemplation again with a different story—perhaps your favorite story.

How did it feel to be present in

that story?

If you imagined you were one of the characters in the story, try imagining that you, yourself are present. If you have already imagined being present, try imagining being one of the characters. What differences do you notice? Which way feels more God-centered to you?

Step

1: C

ente

red

in G

od

’s M

issi

on


We worked through some tough questions in this Step.

What were your feelings and

insights about what you heard?

Step 8: W

aking

up

to G

od

’s Call to

Diversity


Take a serious look at the way

you spend your days.

Are they inspiring to you? Do they fit with your Core Beliefs? Can you experiment with new ways of living that will shift you more in line with your Core Beliefs?

Step

7: Y

ou

r Pe

rso

nal

Co

re P

ract

ices


Ignatian Contemplation (cont.) Step 1: C

entered

in G

od

’s Missio

n



experiencing Lectio Divina?

Try Lectio Divina reading different translations (perhaps NRSV and The Message). Have both versions at hand and marked so you can read them back-to-back. Does a word or phrase speak to you more in one translation than the other?

Step

1: C

ente

red

in G

od

’s M

issi

on


Have you tried experiments in

your own practices?

Perhaps you read about a new way to prepare eggs. It’s not the way you did it in the past, but you gave it a try. Think about an example from your own life. How did it feel to try something new? Did you resist or embrace the new way? How do you like to be introduced to new ways of doing things? What works best for you?

Step 7: Yo

ur Perso

nal C

ore P

ractices


Do you have a good friend or

mentor who can point out which

of your practices need to

change?

Has anyone ever made a helpful comment like this that helped you to change for the better?

Step

7: Y

ou

r Pe

rso

nal

Co

re P

ract

ices


Take a few minutes to reflect on

these ways of praying.

Does one feel easier than the others? Which one speaks to your soul? Will you make a practice of one of these?

Step 1: C

entered

in G

od

’s Missio

n


Use this space to journal about

how you feel about keeping a

daily journal (ironic, we know!).

Have you had this practice before? Did you start? If you chose not to start, try to express why you made that choice.

Step

2: C

ente

rin

g t

hro

ug

h S

crip

ture

an

d P

raye

r


Explore any surprises you had

while the group drafted the

Purpose Statement.

Step 6: A

Clear P

urp

ose


Think about the new draft

Purpose Statement.

How does it reflect the work you have been doing? Was there a Purpose Statement in place before beginning this process? How has it changed (or not) through this process?

Step

6: A

Cle

ar P

urp

ose


Have you started the 15 minute

faith practices?

How does it feel? Will you commit to continuing? Why or why not?

Step 2: C

enterin

g th

rou

gh

Scriptu

re and

Prayer


Use this space to direct the

questions Jesus asked onto

yourself.

Who do people say you are? Who do you say you are? Who do you suppose God says that you are? Why?

Step

2: C

ente

rin

g t

hro

ug

h S

crip

ture

an

d P

raye

r


Answer for yourself, “Why do I

exist in this place, in this day and

time?”

What is your reaction to the phrase, “we behave our way into a new way of thinking”? Do you have a personal example of this?

Step 6: A

Clear P

urp

ose


Record your reflection on

Paul’s words in Philippians 4:8-9,

11-13 here.

Step

6: A

Cle

ar P

urp

ose


Use this space to direct the

questions Jesus asked onto

yourself (cont.)

Step 2: C

enterin

g th

rou

gh

Scriptu

re and

Prayer


Martin Luther wrote, “If you want to change the world, pick up a pen and write.” Words are important. This step is about understanding the way LEAD uses the phrases Core Values, Core Beliefs, Core Convictions, and Core Practices.

Use these pages to dig deeply

into your own soul and state

your own Core Beliefs.

Who are you if you stripped away all the trimmings—clothes and possessions, language and culture, social standing and family? What is at the center of you?

Step

3: U

nd

erst

and

ing

Co

re V

alu

es


If you were spending the

afternoon with Jesus, what

would you share about your

core convictions and how do you

think Jesus would react to them?

Step 5: Yo

ur Perso

nal C

ore C

on

viction

s


Think about an action, habit, or

activity that you do that would

shock your family or community

if you quit doing it.

Would that be a good thing? Or would it be sorely missed?

Step

5: Y

ou

r Pe

rso

nal

Co

re C

on

vict

ion

s


Your Core Beliefs (cont.) Step 3: U

nd

erstand

ing

Co

re Values


Use these pages to put words to

your Core Convictions. These

are the values you look for in

your country, church,

community, and family.

Look at your last month’s bank statement and your check register. Look at where you spent your money. Would anyone be able to guess your Core Convictions by your Core Practices? What do people see that you do? What do you do in secret that upholds your Convictions?

Step

3: U

nd

erst

and

ing

Co

re V

alu

es


What are the “themes” running

through your life?

Service, perhaps? Or learning? How about creativity, adventure, trail-blazing, or keeping comfortable?

Step 5: Yo

ur Perso

nal C

ore C

on

viction

s


What have you done in your life

to align with your Core Beliefs?

Have you been bold, or have you gone along with the expectations of your family and society?

Step

5: Y

ou

r Pe

rso

nal

Co

re C

on

vict

ion

s


Your Core Convictions (cont.) Step 3: U

nd

erstand

ing

Co

re Values


On this page, draw a picture of a

tree. In the roots, write a word

or two from your Core Beliefs

page. On the branches, write

some words from your

Convictions page. On the leaves

write the Practices you do or

hope to do.

Step

3: U

nd

erst

and

ing

Co

re V

alu

es


What is God calling you to do?

If you could change one thing in the world, what would it be?

Step 4: Yo

ur Perso

nal C

ore B

eliefs


Have you ever written down your

code of ethics?

Try to do that on this page. If you were the ruler of the world, what would you want the world to look like?

Step

4: Y

ou

r Pe

rso

nal

Co

re B

elie

fs


On this page, consider how you

personally interact with the

scriptures.

Do you read the Bible? (Really? No one is looking over your shoulder. Be honest.) Does it make sense to you? Do you have a favorite story or verse? Why does that part call to you?

Step 4: Yo

ur Perso

nal C

ore B

eliefs


On this page, consider the

Creeds and Confessions that

your church uses.

Read them over (they are probably all on the internet if you don’t have a copy at home). Now write your own Confession of Faith in your own words.

Step

4: Y

ou

r Pe

rso

nal

Co

re B

elie

fs


What is your theology?

There is a saying that if you know someone’s theology, you will know their anthropology. This means that how we perceive God will shape how we react to other people. How does the way you treat people show what your perceptions of God are?

Step 4: Yo

ur Perso

nal C

ore B

eliefs

Center - Amazon Web Services

Documents

Transcript of Center - Amazon Web Services