Emerging Spirit @ The United Church of Canada Emerging Spirit @ The United Church of Canada

I don't usually pass along stories I receive via email but, perhaps coming so close after Christmas, this one struck a chord. Gets one wondering about where God might be playing these days and who is paying attention.

A man sat at a Metro station in Washington, D.C. and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousand of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

Skimming through Coaching and Mentoring for Dummies a couple of observations leapt out.

"The vast majority of managers tend to function more as doers than as coaches."

And, "A track record of coaching and developing others and functioning as a real leader aren't usually major prerequisites for advancement."

I felt a light bulb go on.

I wonder how many get into the order of ministry/church business because of an initial attraction to things like biblical study, theological questions, spiritual inquiry or a deep desire to care for people. In our heart of hearts we did not really sign up to be a church leader or church builder/entrepreneur. And, like those in engineering, IT, law and other disciplines, when continuing educational opportunities arise we gravitate to courses in our first love and that which initially brought us success.

I have a soft spot for international hockey, probably a holdover from being raised during the heyday of the hometown 1961 World Champion Trail Smoke Eaters.

Following the Juniors recent 5^th straight gold medal, I read a feature in the Vancouver Province newspaper about how the Canadian hockey system was rebuilt after 1981. The junior team was fifth at the world junior hockey tournament in 1979 and 1980 and seventh in 1981.

After this Murray Costello and others decided something had to be done. Calls were made, doors resounded with knocks and presentations were made. The result was the Program of Excellence. And Canadian hockey stepped back from the brink and towards excellence. The challenge of the changing global hockey context made us better.

Leads me to wonder.