The best decision anyone can ever make

Take a look at my friend Chris Duffett's blog on this one:

http://chrisduffett.com/2015/06/25/the-best-decision-anyone-can-ever-make/#comment-4000

Why it's time to forget the pecking order ... at church.

I'm nearing the end of my sabbatical time very soon, so it's time to start thinking about 'being productive' again! Consequently, I've been very grateful to listen to 'Why it's time to forget the pecking order at work' by Margaret Hefferman's TED talk here: 

http://go.ted.com/b8St

I think this has a lot to say to us in churches, so I'll be interested to hear what a group of local church leaders make of it.

Margaret Heffernan: The dangers of "willful blindness"

Following up my last post here's a link to the TED Talk by Margaret Heffernan: 'The dangers of "willful blindness"

http://go.ted.com/ba2Y

I've no doubt many people will recognise some aspect of a Church they've been a part of at some stage. I guess the bigger challenge, for those of us who occupy places of leadership and the consequent power it brings, is to spot where we might be in danger of colluding with a system designed to avoid, or deny ... colluding with wilful blindness!

FIFA and wilful blindness?

I've been away on holiday. Great time, by the way ... first time to the Isle of Wight since I was a child ... However, one of the things, which has happened whilst away was the breaking news of the arrests and subsequent investigation into FIFA. Of course, on one hand, I know no more than has been reported, but on the other, we have all 'known' there's been a major issue, which sounds like corruption to most people for years. I imagine this is another case of a reunion between denial and reality.  Once again, at some future stage when more of the truth is revealed, we shall be asking the question 'how' could something like this continue for so long?
I'm interested mainly because I care about football, but secondly because I'm researching whether religious institutions (for my particular interest a Baptist 'Association', or 'Union', but more generally applicable) can, or 'how' they become missional movements.
My thesis is a long, long way away, just as I imagine any lawsuit against individual FIFA executives is, but there are two things I'm muling over this week:

i.   How can core people continue denying the reality everyone else appears to be aware of of so long?  
ii.  It is actually very hard to address the core issues in a way which makes a difference to outcomes.

I think I'll be getting down Margaret Herrerman's book, 'Wilful Blindness' from my shelf again. Written in the wake of the Enron saga, I think, she explores how people collude with what they on the one hand 'see', but manage to ignore. I'm not preaching this week, but if i were I think it would be on the Good Samaritan.

NB. Interesting how it was the Americans, who 'know nothing about football' (to quote myself on many occasions) who've pulled the plug.