Dear Friends,
I’m writing this message from Minnesota where I’ll be doing a marathon on Sunday. Earlier in the week I was at ELCA headquarters for some continuing education.
The featured speaker was a man of great wisdom, Walter Smith Jr., PhD. He’s a psychologist and an expert in family systems. I have lots to think about (and share) from his presentation. This week I’ll share some of his advice about making decisions.
Sometimes organizations, including churches, get stuck because they are trying to figure out the “right thing to do.” This can be paralyzing be cause the right thing can seem illusory and lead to anxiety.
For Dr. Smith there are at least “10 right answers and the best one is what we agree on.” Now some of us will say, “but we’ve experienced bad decisions, so we need to make the right decision this time.” The key here is being flexible. Flexibility is more important than being right.
When we can be flexible, listen to one another, and consider all the ideas we can lessen the anxiety around important issues. For ALC, I’m thinking about our budget deficit and the decisions that we need to make. Can we recognize that there are many different ways we can reduce spending or increase income? Maybe the solution is a combination of both. But the key for our congregation is to work together to find a solution that we can embrace.
I look forward to hearing your suggestions. Meanwhile I encourage us all to prayerfully think about how we can work together for the good of the community. And maybe you can add a prayer for my marathon on Sunday
Peace in Christ,
Pastor Nancy
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