Sometimes I have trouble looking ahead and seeing where I, or the people I lead, need to go. It’s great to have friends and co-workers who can step in and lead your vision out further. Although vision is foundational to anything (you need to know where you’re going or what you’re building), it’s only part of leadership.
If I see point A, and want to get to point Z, the question of “how” begs to be answered. Seeing A, J, R, Z is one step better, but there are few people who can intuitively see the remaining steps between each checkpoint. This is hard for quick-learners to understand, but the majority of people need to be shown A, B, C…J, K, L…R, S, T…X, Y, Z. Yes, this takes more time, time that leaders guard tightly, but in the end this added time results in more people getting from point A to Z.
As someone called to full-time ministry in the church, my job is to “equip the saints for the work of ministry” (Eph. 4:12). I am constantly wrestling over how to follow Jesus faithfully as a disciple and make more faithful disciples. These questions have been helpful to me as I try to figure out how to help people move along in discipleship:
“How did I personally get to where I am now?”
“What were the influencing experiences?”
“Who was most helpful to me in these experiences?”
“What pieces were most difficult for me to learn?”
“How can I pass this along to others?”
What questions do you ask to help think of your own growth and how to lead others? And how do you see the above questions answered in your own life story?
I thought it appropriate, since I mentioned Cowen Park Grocery (Ravenna and Brooklyn) in my last post, that I should give an update on how my neighborhood exploration has been lately.
So a few weekends ago I went into CPG for a cup or morning coffee. This was about my 2nd week in the neighborhood, and I had been visiting the store frequently. Determined to take my relationship with the owner/barista to the next level, I began a conversation.
The owner, Sunny, is a Korean woman who reminded me of my mom. Since my mom is a grandma to my 3-year-old niece, I thought it natural that asking her about her grandkids would be one of her favorite topics of conversation.
A few minutes into small talk…this happened:
Me: “So do you have grandkids?”
Sunny: “Huh?”
Me: “Oh, do you have any grandchildren?”
Sunny: “Do I look like I should have grandchildren?”
Me: (everything begins to click in my head) “Huh, oh, what, no, wait, look, here…” (panic as I reach for my Iphone, trying to show her that my mom looks young and my niece is cute, and, and…)
Apparently she was NOT a grandma.
The good news is that this social fail on my part has somehow turned favorable, and I am now an unforgettable name and face! God is good in my folly =)
I just moved into the U-District, and thought I’d share a couple brief observations.
My street is, in my opinion, the nicest closest street to campus. It straddles the Ravenna/U-District neighborhood line. If I walk out my house and head north a few blocks, there’s a park with mothers and kids, and a neighborhood grocery store. As a friend described, “Very cute…” Out the house and south, U-District. I can’t give it a just description, but eclectic and full of life and somewhat unpredictable.
So far I’m loving my new place. Roommates, Rent, and off street parking are all wins. Cowen Park Grocery is my favorite nearby coffee spot at the moment. There’s also a local fruit/veggie stand on my street, which I will be supporting this coming month.