I have been wanting to get back to writing a brief, end-of-the-week post for a while. Hopefully, this is the start of something. You can find it here.
Category: Formation & Self Care
Bullies Suck
Bullies Suck. They just do. The latest over at Substack.
The Two Best Pieces of Advice I’ve Received
The Two Best Pieces of Advice I’ve Received. – bobwilson.substack.com
I Don’t Understand the Confusion About Ireland, Northern Ireland and the UK
One thing that’s amazed me since moving to Ireland is the number of smart people (mainly Americans) who don’t know the difference between Ireland 🇮🇪and Northern Ireland . The Roys Report does essential work, but when its reporters make these mistakes it distracts from the story. Alan Scott Compares Abuse Allegations to Persecution While Protesters…
What Is the Best Worst Apology You Have Ever Received?
I have been thinking about someone quite skilled at scapegoating. That got me thinking about apologies. This led to the question in the title of this post: What Is the Best Worst Apology You Have Ever Received? I have two. One I have mentioned previously: I am sorry for whatever it is you think I…
Decision Making – A Third Way
In the 1970s, something known as the shepherding movement appeared in a number of charismatic churches. The shepherding movement basically took ideas like discipleship and mentoring and added an obscene level of control. How did it work? When you were part of a shepherding church, be assigned a “discipler”. One aspect of this relationship was…
If Loving You is Wrong…
We use the word love expansively. I love Doritos. I love coffee. I love watching the sun come up on a cool crisp morning. I love my wife. I believe a crucial idea when thinking about this is how our loves, order or orient our lives. I do love Doritos. However, I rarely eat them…
Today was a Tough Week
I have no meetings scheduled for this week, so I was planning on putting some extra time into my dissertation. I dropped M off at school, took a walk along the Promenade, and drove home ready to get to work. I dealt with a couple of issues that had come up over the weekend, then…
I Have a not so Little List
Over the past week, I’ve been digging into the idea of habits and practices. Specifically how they form us. This morning I had a learning lesson that I wanted to share. I come up with a lot of ideas. Some are pretty good, and some will never see the light of day. When I talked…
The Good Life!
I ended a few posts back asking what you love. I was working with the idea that we behave not based on what we believe but instead on what we love.I know I should sleep more, but I stay up late watching tv.I know I should eat better and exercise more, but things are hectic…
Getting Out What You Put In
There is a quote that gets attributed to various management thinkers, and it basically says: The sytems you have in place are perfectly designed to give you the results you are receiving. various Think about your morning routine for a moment. What is the first thing you do once you are past that half-asleep/half-waking state?…
I Thought This Was Supposed to Be Fun
A couple of weeks ago, Liz had a new violin student show up. I realised the other day I hadn’t seen her since. I asked Liz where she was, and she told me the person realised that she didn’t want to practice and wouldn’t be coming back. If she had stuck with it, in about…
You Are What You Love
As I mentioned last Friday, I want to spend some time looking at the importance of things like rituals, habits, rhythms and practices for spiritual formation. Eventually, I will provide definitions for those terms…but for today, let’s start here digging into the idea that you are what you love. Imagine signing up for a gym…
Having the same conversation
About a week ago, our house alarm started going off around 5 pm on a Friday afternoon. The house we bought last year has two alarm systems installed. One is monitored, the other is not. The one that is not monitored was the one going off. Trust me, it is an awful noise. I went…
The Most Harmful Thing I Believed About Church Planting
As the Table – Dublin is getting off the ground, I wanted to repost some of what I’ve written over the past few years…specifically regarding church planting. I’d love to get your thoughts. :: originally posted 23 April 2015:: Before planting a church in Ithaca, NY I spent about a decade starting and leading campus…
How much Netflix can you watch?
I’ve lost count of how many articles I’ve seen over the past week entitle something like, “Top 10 movies to watch while you are on lockdown.” Okay, I enjoy watching movies and a good TV show as much as the next person, but when we get to the other side of this…which we will…do we…
Voting for Jesus
Confession time.
Sometimes a situation arises and my brain kicks into problem-solving mode.
Occasionally that can be positive. I’m learning more and more that when the “something that happens” is a person, seeing them as a problem to solve is a mindset I need to give up.
Relationship versus Efficiency
Liz and I returned last week from a conference near London. One of my goals, when I go to a conference, is to come away with some good book recommendations. And I got a few this time! I’m currently about halfway through Rare Leadership and Building a Story Brand. The latter has been a great…
Not So Great Expectations
One of the best parts of doing a Home Missions Assignment is connecting and reconnecting with friends who were part of ministries you’ve been involved with over the years. We have been blown away and humbled as we’ve heard stories of how the early years at the Vineyard in Ithaca impacted lives. But here’s what…
What if…
Have you noticed that normally when we start thinking of “What if’s?” we generally imagine the worst? Around the start of this year, we began nailing down the dates for our upcoming trip to the States. We still had some uncertainty because one of our kids is taking the Leaving Cert this month. But as…
Near Sighted or Far Sighted
I’ve been thinking about vision a lot lately.
Actually, I’ve been rethinking about vision a lot.
More Questions than Answers
I’ve had this thought bouncing around in my head the past couple days…though I might as well write it down. What does it say about a person who attempts to make themselves look good, by tearing others down? What does it say about a person who does that only behind the other’s back? (And is…
Labels, Boxes, and Dehumanizing the Other
I am becoming more and more frustrated with labels. Early on in our time in Ireland, I received an email from a person who had heard we were church planting in Clontarf. The email consisted of two questions: “Are you a charismatic christian?” “Are you planting a charismatic church?” I didn’t know the person who…
5 Easy Steps to Master any Skill…
…okay, not really. Experts make me nervous. Not people who have reached a level of expertise in their field, but more those who have written a book, or built a large church or ministry and begin speaking at conferences teaching people how to do what they do. I’ve experienced this in fields such as: -prayer…
Thus Sayeth the Lord…or maybe not
I spent too much of my life in churches where a person could use the phrase “Thus says the Lord,” and whatever followed would often carry the weight of scripture. When I was younger and less mature, I would go to conferences hoping that the person on stage would have a “thus says the Lord,”…