Fuller Seminary in Pasadena

Spent today at Fuller Seminary in Pasadena. This morning I had a meeting with Walter Wright who heads up the DePree leadership centre here at the seminary. This is a new centre at the seminary with the aim of encouraging leadership particularly in the business world though much of its work will also impact the church in the long run.

Walt is a humble and gracious man who welcomed me to his spacious office where we chatted through a number of leadership issues. Walt was President of Regent seminary in Vancouver where Eugene Peterson and Jim Packer teach ( something which he himself found overwhelmingly humbling) and has written a number of books which I have found very helpful, well worth a read. Relational Leadership, a great study of the pastoral epistles,; Don’t step on the rope, about teamwork drawing on a mountaineering theme; Mentoring, a very practical book on investing in the lives of others. Walt encouraged me in a number of ways. He stressed the importance on the issue of character in leadership, that the values that are important in any church or company are a reflection of the character of those who are in leadership. Therefore character transformation is a priority for anyone in leadership. Who you are is more important than what you do. This makes the devotional life of critical importance.

Walt and the work of the centre seeks to encourage those in the business world to see what they do as ministry, that whatever we do in our lives is ministry. We are all on mission all the time. The kingdom extends to every aspect of our lives, not least our work lives. Worth remembering.

The afternoon was spent with Professor Eddie Gibbs and the doctor of ministry students at Fuller. Eddie is 69 years old yet retains a passion and a zeal for the church, its mission and relevance in the world. He stresses the importance of still learning something no matter what stage you are at in life. Walt asked me a similar question, “what do you want to learn next?” worth considering for all of us. It was aprivilege to sit in on one of the doctor of ministry classes and to engage with the students.

In the midst of all of these travels, I find myself reflecting on my own life and ministry. At almost 44 I have a sort of half time feeling about where I am at. I see both my own life and the life of the church as being at critical stages with the importance of making wise choices being vital to the future of both. I will continue to reflect in this blog over the next few months.

Gordon.