Back to school…for all of us!

A few days ago I went to our local shopping centre, my first visit since March and lockdown! Locally it’s affectionately known as Merry HELL (Hill!) and the day I went it was certainly that!

Why? It was raining and it was the weekend before the kids go back to school!

It made me think of all our kids, young people, teachers, support staff, parents who are gearing up for this new term but then I had this thought, it’s back to school..for all of us!

If you’re a business leader, maybe learning to lead virtual or hybrid teams, if you’re a church leader it will be learning what the mission looks like when the landscape has changed so much. For all of us learning to adapt to the new normal will require a certain posture and I will get to that but first, here’s 3 of the biggies I think we all need to learn…..

We need to learn to live with uncertainty…..

The world we are heading into is in many ways unfamiliar and with this comes a new appreciation and maybe understanding of our emotions as we try to live with uncertainty.

In Ps. 139 when David invites God to ‘search his heart’ he goes on to say, ‘test my anxious thoughts’ in other words reveal my fears! This can’t mean the kind of fears we are aware of like heights, snakes and spiders it must mean those fears, anxious thoughts we are not aware of..its what lies beneath….

Let me be honest, as a Church leader I’ve had some “anxious thoughts” that have surfaced  during these days of uncertainty. Actually there are many but here a few;

Have I got what it takes?

Will we have a church at the end of all this?

What will the future look like?

What do I hold onto and what do I let go of?

How can I lead myself let alone others who are looking to me?

The second thing I’m learning is this…..

We need to learn to live with ambiguity…..

Not everything is as cut and dried as we used to think! The simplistic binary approach to the world where something is either “this or that” has been replaced by something much more nuanced. We need to learn to hold more things in tension, to live in the grey as one of my heroes from the Bible did so well. Daniel lived in a grey, often hostile world and at times it appears he embraces his Babylon, learns the culture, language, adopts the new name he is given but at other times he draws some lines and stands alone.

I’m learning this….not everything “old” is outdated and not everything “new” should be resisted.

During lockdown many churches have rediscovered pastoral care! Visiting people, sending hand written cards, knocking on doors and we’ve learned that sometimes the “old” is still powerful. Maybe some of the ancient paths are still worth treading?

Likewise some of our older people have embraced the “new” and with it met God in powerful ways. One lady in her 80’s who has attended another church for years but during lockdown asked us if we could help her get online which we did. I was so moved when I received a message from her saying for years she’d sat in church but now through watching our livestream realised what Jesus has done for her and surrendered her life to Him!

The third thing I’m learning is this….

We need to learn to build genuine community…

During lockdown we discovered the beauty and richness of human connection when it was taken away. Then we showed how amazingly adaptable and ingenious we can be as we learned new ways of connecting, watching out for our neighbours and extending care and compassion to our wider community.

Let’s not lose this, let’s continue to be learners.

So what posture should we adopt as we all go back to school?

We can buy the shoes and the new uniform, fill our school bag with equipment but to be a life long learner requires more than that.

I want to suggest 4 characteristics, 4 postures that will help us stay learners (I’ve borrowed this from North Point Church who we partner with through the Further Faster Network which exists to help churches grow through reaching people who don’t do church!

http://www.furtherfasternetwork.org)

#1 – Humility – this is so crucial, we must stay with the posture of a learner not an expert.

During these months I’ve seen collaboration like never before. The 3 main networks we as a church are a part of, Elim, Further faster and Love Black Country have exemplified this posture of humility, giving and sharing of ideas, resources and expertise.

With a posture of humility comes a disposition for reflection, an openness to embrace feedback and a willingness to change.

“We don’t learn from experience we learn from evaluated experience”

#2 – Teachability – this follows on from humility as we learn to stay open to new ideas, new approaches, maybe even resurrecting some of the old that still has life and value!!

Albert Einstein said, “any fool can know, the point is to understand”

I’ve been so grateful during these months for many of our younger leaders who’ve taught me such a lot. Humility says, I don’t need to be the hero of my own story, I want to learn, I want to grow and anyone can teach me what I don’t know.

#3 – Curiosity – this is what children have, the ability to ask questions, the fascination with how things work, the refusal to plateau and the drive to keep growing.

When you’re finished learning in some ways you’re finished and to quote Einstein again, “It is not that I’m so smart but I stay with the questions much longer”

#4 – Intentionality – this is where the rubber hits the road for me! I can go back to school and I can listen and absorb but if I don’t put it into practice am I really learning at all?

So, how  are you doing with these 4 postures?

Humility – Teachability – Curiosity – Intentionality

One more question, what are you learning as you head….back to school?

I’d love to hear from you either reply on the blog or comment on the social media post…..