Yes, I'm still here, no I've not given up on blogging.
I find people blog for various reasons. One is to keep family and friends far away (or in the immediate vicinity, which I find odd) updated on their lives. Some people blog as a way of scrapbooking their children's lives. Some people blog as a way of processing their own personal work, like having an online therapist. Some people blog as a way to tell their story, to be heard. Some people blog in order to network with others. And then there are people like me who blog when they get upset or, as I prefer to think, righteously indignant about something. It's cathartic and I guess lately I just haven't been that ticked off. Or when I have been, I haven't been near my computer!
So if I'm not upset, why am I blogging you might ask. Well, today I'm choosing to use my blog for another, no less passionate purpose; advocacy! Winnipeg has two very important and valuable resources that I think need a plug (whether they're looking for one or not!).
First, Mediation Services. This is a great organization that I think is being totally underused by churches. If Alicia didn't work there in the front office, I would never have known the extent of what they do. They are busy, they are successful and they are providing awesome services to a lot of people. A large part of what they do is actually provide mediation services for groups and individuals. They work closely with the court system, but they also work a lot with large and small businesses and more personal matters. Apparently they are the place to go when you and your neighbor just can't get along. But what I think is tremendous is the amount of classes and certificates that they offer and this is where I think churches need to get on board.
This last week I took a one-day class called "Managing Unresolvable Problems." Where was this class when I was in seminary!? It was fabulous.Churches and schools, especially those that welcome hearing from people with varying opinions are constantly confronted by issues that cannot be resolved (worship wars, theological differences, tradition vs. change, planning vs. action etc.) The instructor was engaging and taught the material as one who has lived with it for a long time (thought he's not that old, probably about 40). And one of my favourite aspects of the class was its practicality. I learned theory interwoven with story, interwoven with practical application. We were up and moving in the room, we were working together, we were all actively engaged the whole time. Did my mind wander occasionally? Yes. But the reason it wandered was because I was actively imagining how I could use the material in various settings. And this was possible because he wasn't trying to cram TONS of material into one day. The amount of material was manageable! Quite a difference from seminary where I felt like I could never really internalize anything and figure out how to apply it because there was always more theory to learn.
As I sat in this class all I kept thinking was where are the pastors? All those pastors who struggle with presenting a vision, with managing conflicting opinions, with living up to bizarre expectations because their predecessor did something that worked initially, but in the end led the church right back into their old rut.
And Mediation Services offers so many more classes. Next week I'm taking "Dealing with Change", and I can't wait to take "High Stakes Conversations", "Culture and Conflict", "Dealing with Difficult People", "Transforming the Argument", and "Generations at Work". These are short one or two day seminars that give you a small amount of theory and practical tools that can really be applied anywhere (home, work, church etc.). Because the groups they work with are so diverse, they really present things in a way that can be helpful to everyone there. At least that was my experience.
And taking that class reminded me that I really am a practical concrete learner, something that I struggled with a lot in my undergrad and grad work where abstraction is valued. For once I felt in my comfort zone!
This is really a great resource. So pastors out there who have continuing education budgets, this might be the place for you! It would be money well-spent. Here is the link to the Resolution Skills Centre which is the training wing of Mediation Services. http://www.resolutionskills.ca/
Second, the Mennonite Church Canada Resource Centre. This is another fabulous resource for Canadian churches. They carry books dealing with peace, theology, spirituality, music, children's ministry, youth ministry, pastoral care, children's books, curriculum, cd's, dvd's etc. The staff there do an amazing job at looking at what's out there and choosing good quality material that support an Anabaptist Christian understanding of the Gospel and what it means to be the church. Again, they have high quality material. It never ceases to amaze me what I can find when I go there. They also have a large database of downloadable material. Is your church looking at different ways to do parent/child dedication? Just go to their site and download material from various churches. Are you wondering what books you might like to put in your church library? Visit the site, or the centre and see what's new.
The material is not all Mennonite, though certainly anything published by Mennomedia can be found there. The staff make an effort to draw from many sources in order to offer the best material to their constituents. If you are part of an MC Canada church, this resource is FREE. And when I say FREE, I really mean it. If you live in B.C. and you see a book you'd like to check out, just call up the centre, or email and they will send it to you for FREE. And you can send it back for FREE. If you belong to a different denomination, you too can benefit from all the FREE-ness just by paying a small yearly fee (it really is small, like $20 or something).
Right now the Centre's website takes a bit of practice to navigate, but coming soon is a brand new website that will be really user friendly, at least from what I've seen.
This really is a great resource. I know, I know. You can just order it on Amazon. It's so much easier. It is easier, but it also costs money. And if you don't know what you're looking for, Amazon can be an nightmare to navigate. You can find anything on Amazon, and that includes a whole lot of crap. The resource centre does so much of the work for you and their staff are knowledgeable.They also give you the opportunity to practice creation care and good stewardship by checking out a book before you buy it or using it without having to buy your own copy. Church libraries should be all over this place!
Check it out!
All this is to say that I strongly support Mediation Services, and I strongly support the Mennonite Church Canada Resource Centre.
I'm not sure if you noticed.
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