Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Ministry Tips 101-125

101. Don't lean back on an unfamiliar chair.
102. Park in a distant parking place and leave the nearer ones for latecomers and poor walkers.
103. If you drink alcohol, designate drinking hours, say noon-3 and 6-midnight. Never drink outside these times.
104. Keep your house in such a state that you could show round a prospective purchaser in 20 minutes time. Or the Archdeacon.
105. Try and read something irrelevant to next week's sermon; be amazed how often it isn't.
106. Learn some generic open questions. If you don't know what this means, find out.
107. You learn things by looking out of city café windows.
108. Clergy saying psalms, canticles and responsories in the congregation are usually too loud.
109. Learn to welcome, enjoy and act upon all feedback; it is the only way to grow.
110. Praise good behaviour loads more than you criticise bad.
111. All the other people in the world also think the world would be a better place if everyone was more like them.
112. 'Most people overestimate what they can achieve in 6 months and underestimate what they can achieve in 5 years.' (Anon)
113. Improve the coffee if it is bad. It will take you 10 times as long to change the church as it takes you to do this.
114. New liturgical experiences are created when someone gets old liturgical experiences wrong.
115. If you have time to read a book on time management then you don't have a problem with time management.
116. None of us is as smart as all of us. Crowds are wise.
117. Try to have healthy refreshment options available at church events - fruit slices instead of biscuits or cake.
118. Be kind to people. It is amazing how many reports bishops receive of clergy being cruel.
119. Tell people how long the event will last. Don't over-run. It is all they will remember.
120. If you choose to wear a dog collar be aware that people will talk to it, not you.
121. If you end up having a pastoral conversation in the supermarket, don't block the aisle.
122. Build relationships with your natural communities - school gate, dog walkers, pub regulars, sports watchers...
123. If you hate ice-skating don't offer to take the youth group ice-skating. Etc.
124. There is a school of ministry that says it must be hard, painful and sacrificial all the time. This is bollocks.
125. In meetings, events and gatherings as far possible the audience should set the mood.

2 comments:

Nick Sharp said...

Hi Steve - can I share these with my colleagues in deanery chapter?

Steve Tilley said...

Yes of course.