Halt The Wagons is a track from Kate Rusby’s new album Philosophers, Poets, And Kings.
It commemorates the 180th anniversary of the Huskar Pit Disaster where 26 children aged from 7-17 from a local village lost their lives, and features the Barnsley Youth Choir.
My John Knox theologian statue from Missional Wear arrived.
Knox was not so much a theologian as a pastor.
A working-class theologian as it were.
I was glad to have backed the creation of this statue because Knox seems neglected among those who have contributed to our theological heritage.
Well, last week I wrote “I’ll pick Queensland in the State of Origin. It all depends on the forward packs. Queensland’s doesn’t look as strong in attack, but they are solid defenders, so that may blunt NSW’s advantage. Or not.”
The Queensland forward defence was dominant, particularly in the second half. A well-earned win, with room for improvement.
In the AFL Brisbane have a danger game as Carlton may get a sacked coach improvement. It worked for North Melbourne who would have been favourites this week regardless.
As far as NRL goes, who cares? Queensland won.
NRL (last round 2/4; season tally 56/92)
Souths
Canberra
Melbourne
Cronulla
North Queensland
Brisbane
Easts
Saint George
AFL (last round 7/9; season tally 60/99)
Geelong
Brisbane
North Melbourne
Greater Western Sydney
West Coast
Collingwood
Something that I’ve become conscious of over the last couple of years is the link between growth in congregational size and change in leadership style.
Increasing beyond certain numbers of people in a congregation is sometimes portrayed as a ‘barrier’.
What is being identified in that is that at certain sizes a group of people necessarily relate to one another differently, and they relate to leadership differently.
It is a change from one form of group dynamic to another form of group dynamic.
That’s not a good thing or a bad thing. It is just the way things are.
Most education for pastoral ministry is aimed at the most basic (smaller) grouping of people. The principles behind what changes a pastor needs to make in order to effectively care for mid to larger groups of people are not specifically identified.
There is a grieving process, though.
Particularly when the calling and practice of pastoral life has been framed in one expression, and that needs to be modified and changed to serve the needs of a larger group.
I really don’t want to be an inhibiting factor on the life of the church I serve.
So change is the only option.
Ed Stetzer puts in helpfully when he writes that pastoral leadership that wants to support a church that is growing from one size of group dynamic to another size of group dynamic needs to know “that it’s not just more growth of the same kind — it’s a different way of leading and a new way of growing.”
He writes more about leadership change in situations where churches are growing in size here.
