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Essays

Thoughtful personal reflections from a variety of perspectives about issues relevant to Christian leaders

Paul Luikart: How to apply sabermetrics to homelessness

The director of a homeless shelter asks: What if social service agencies focused on helping people who are poor improve both the quantity and the quality of their relationships?

By Paul Luikart Writer

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Nathan Kirkpatrick: Leading across generations

To receive the gifts and overcome the challenges in an intergenerational community, a leader must communicate effectively, listen for values, understand events that have shaped generational worldviews, harvest wisdom and continue learning, writes a managing director for Leadership Education at Duke Divinity.

By Nathan Kirkpatrick Principal, Saison Consulting, LLC

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Sean Mitchell: Five questions Christian leaders need to answer about fundraising

What’s your personal mission? That question is the first step in the ministry of fundraising, and helps keep the focus on serving God, not just raising money, writes the director of stewardship development for one of the largest PCUSA churches in the nation.

By Sean Mitchell Director of stewardship development, Myers Park Presbyterian Church

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Dave Odom: Reclaiming the distinctive gifts of a small church

Few places in the U.S. support the conditions for small churches to act like big churches. So they have an opportunity to focus on the activities that both foster the particular gifts of the congregation and make a distinctive witness to the community, writes the executive director of Leadership Education at Duke Divinity.

By David L. Odom Executive director, Leadership Education at Duke Divinity

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L. Gregory Jones: Metaphors matter

The metaphors we use shape our imaginations about ourselves, our work and our organizations. What might we discover if we thought of our organizations as organisms embedded in ecosystems, wonders the executive vice president and provost of Baylor University.

By L. Gregory Jones President, Belmont University

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Theresa F. Latini: Practice Nonviolent Communication to identify, confront and transform aspects of racism

Differentiating our observations from evaluations can help us recognize the fallibility of our own interpretive powers and acknowledge the racism in our own hearts and minds, writes the associate dean of diversity and cultural competency at Western Theological Seminary.

By Theresa F. Latini Associate dean and professor, Western Theological Seminary

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L. Roger Owens: Work too important to delegate -- the leader as culture manager

Managing the culture of an institution is a leader’s work, says a professor at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. He offers three suggestions to cultivate a healthy culture.

By L. Roger Owens Hugh Thomson Kerr Professor of Pastoral Theology, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary

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Mihee Kim-Kort: It's all about curiosity

Curiosity is an important trait, writes a minister. It keeps us compassionate and open to change.

By Mihee Kim-Kort PCUSA minister

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Lisa Nichols Hickman: The threefold practice of abiding

Abiding is difficult in this busy age. But the practices of silent contemplation, shared reflection and anticipation of God’s grace give leaders a way to abide with those they lead, writes a pastor.

By Lisa Nichols Hickman Associate pastor, Myers Park Presbyterian Church

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Gretchen E. Ziegenhals: We are called to be keepers of an open tent

Event design marked by deep hospitality is related to the core of what the church is about. It is a sign that we are making room for God in our gatherings, inviting God into our work and acknowledging our colleagues as children of God, writes a managing director at Leadership Education at Duke Divinity.

By Gretchen E. Ziegenhals Spiritual director and retreat leader

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