Officers' Councils 2009...

I thoroughly enjoyed making connections in my mind while at Swanwick for Officers' Councils while exploring the them of Kingdom Ambition. The sessions were all really stimulating in one way or another and very helpful as we looked for anchor points in understanding the Kingdom.

  • I got thinking about the shift from selfishness to selflessness that scripture calls for and models.
  • How grace is the framework for the alternative way of living that Kingdom is all about.
  • How Kingdom Ambition is really to live as a conscious contradiction to the way of the world.
  • How the Rich Young Ruler who sought to be perfect found maturity and completeness in moving out and beyond self.
  • How Zaccheus moved from motives of self to that of hospitality and giving.

It was great to hear something of Booth's developing theology rather than hearing what for me has become an empty rallying call based on isolated quotes left outside of this theology. To hear something of the broadening of Booth's grasp of Salvation and its implication on Kingdom living shaping contemporary mission was heartening. I left wanting more.

Comments

Graeme Smith said…
Any of this available other than to those able to go to Councils?
2:09 PM
Gordon said…
Graeme - this is want the sessions stimulated in me, so they are my thoughts :o) Apart from the TC's keynote speech which is going to be sent out to people - there was no mention.
3:33 PM
Graeme said…
Would love to chat about your thoughts then at some point. Particularly the bits about selflessness etc as they resonate a lot with me too!
5:56 PM
IanH said…
>this is want the sessions stimulated in me, so they are my thoughts

You mean this is what you were day-dreaming about when you should have been paying attention!

The truth will set you free.
Ian
9:28 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A bit of sally bashing....

Came across a good bit of Sally bashing over at salvationsoldiers I have to say we try and make sure that everything we raise goes into projects that build local community in Poplar but hopefully if you read this blog you get that sense anyway.
Read more

Lost Voices of Mission...Fred Brown

Image
Along the world famous Oxford street in London's Westend; nestled in among the classy frontage of designer shops there is almost an unnoticeable, unimpressive wooden door. It is more or less alongside The Regent Hall's main entrance onto the busyness of Oxford Street. People pass the wooden door oblivious to the equally unimpressive wooden steps that go up three storey's to what was Regent Hall's youth club. When I was 10 I played on these bare wooden steps totally unaware of the significance behind and upon which I played. Many years later I discovered a university youth work course - as an induction to Youth Work - stopped outside this insignificant wooden door to point out that Youth Work as we know it in the UK started behind this door. ...whether that be the surbanite flower people that flooded the Westend to express their free love; or the hard core drug community this unimpressive wooden door became the 'portal' that blurred encounter between church an...
Read more

Types of Christian Spirituality...

Image
It is easy to think and to limit ourselves to a single approach to Christian spirituality. A 'if it works for me it should work for you approach' tends to narrow our appreciation of other ways which actually impoverishes our experience of spirituality. Urban T. Holmes has developed a means of exploring spirituality and helps develop an appreciation through discovering links between spirituality, temperament and predisposition. The diagram illustrates his ideas together with potential inherent dangers. The vertical continuum speaks and helps us understand our relational orientation to God. This ranges from engaging with God through understanding and theological process to a more emotive response. Horizontally speaks of a persons preferred means of pursuing the spiritual life. Kataphtic speaks of affirmation and the need of something tangible in an individuals spirituality- this may take the form of worship, art, even imagination with the use of metaphors, symbols and images play...
Read more