Author |
Message |
Topic: A tug toward home |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10187
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Forum: Day 40: Home Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 1:41 pm Subject: A tug toward home |
I grew up on a farm with my brothers, parents, great-grandfather and I living in one house and grandparents in another. Neither my grandmother nor my father had ever lived anywhere else. To my young ... |
Topic: Attentive to the environment and flock |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10340
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Forum: Day 38: Adaptability Posted: Mon May 12, 2008 3:49 pm Subject: Attentive to the environment and flock |
I appreciate Bob’s call for balance between adaptability and intentionality. In my growth as a pastor, I have learned to be less adaptable in some ways (trying to accommodate every suggestion ... |
Topic: The blessing and challenge of leading the whole |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10310
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Forum: Day 35: Think Flock Posted: Mon May 12, 2008 3:15 pm Subject: The blessing and challenge of leading the whole |
Like Tim, I find it a greater challenge to “think flock†than to care for individual sheep. When tending particular sheep, I can easily take a responsive stance: listening and addressing ... |
Topic: A grace-produced crop |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10369
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Forum: Day 33: Productivity Posted: Tue May 06, 2008 2:42 pm Subject: A grace-produced crop |
I appreciate the emphasis in the day’s reading (and in the web postings) on the organic relationship between spiritual productivity and the activity of the Holy Spirit as we abide in Christ. A ... |
Topic: The grace of gifted goats |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10407
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Forum: Day 32: Indigenous Leadership Posted: Wed Apr 16, 2008 10:05 pm Subject: The grace of gifted goats |
I am blessed to serve a congregation with many goats! On the masthead on our Sunday bulletin, there is a designation “Pastor†where my name is listed and another line that reads “Mi ... |
Topic: Forging paths |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10457
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Forum: Day 30: Righteous Ruts Posted: Wed Apr 16, 2008 9:17 pm Subject: Forging paths |
As a child on our family dairy farm, I was sometimes puzzled by the well-worn paths that our cows trod through the pasture. Although they had plenty of space to forge other routes, the cows usually s ... |
Topic: Jumping into the pool |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10449
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Forum: Day 28: GUIDANCE Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2008 9:52 pm Subject: Jumping into the pool |
Our family depends on a woodstove for most of our home heating. A few autumns ago, we lit the first fire of the season. When smoke began to fill our living room, we knew that a bird nest was blockin ... |
Topic: The gift of work and sleep |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10389
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Forum: Day 27: My Sleepless Shepherd Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 9:38 pm Subject: The gift of work and sleep |
The work of a shepherd is never done – whether it is in the home or in the church! I am grateful for the reminder that leading requires both “hard work†and “letting go.†... |
Topic: The source of our authority |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10154
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Forum: Day 23: The Rod Posted: Tue Apr 01, 2008 11:14 am Subject: The source of our authority |
What gives us authority to bear the rod? At a very basic level, it is embedded in our call as shepherd. Still, in a culture that is wary of authority, I think it is helpful to understand a connectio ... |
Topic: Gate-keeping in community |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 11161
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Forum: Day 20: Gatekeepers Posted: Sun Mar 30, 2008 8:59 pm Subject: Gate-keeping in community |
The gate to the flock of God needs guarding as much as it ever has. At the same time, I think it is important to distinguish the unique role of Jesus as the Gate who provides access (salvation!) to t ... |
Topic: Wrestling with rather than against the Lion of Judah |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10455
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Forum: Day 19: The Other Lion Posted: Fri Mar 28, 2008 9:28 am Subject: Wrestling with rather than against the Lion of Judah |
This chapter unsettles me for a few reasons:
1. I need to be reminded that any attempt to domesticate the Lion of Heaven is futile and foolhardy.
2. If faced with a whole community that were u ... |
Topic: Lost sheep in wolves’ clothing |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10926
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Forum: Day 17: Recognizing the Wolves Posted: Wed Mar 26, 2008 9:11 pm Subject: Lost sheep in wolves’ clothing |
Wolves indeed prowl at the edge of every community. I understand that better now than when I first began pastoral ministry. I do not recall any seminary courses that addressed the challenge of preda ... |
Topic: Trampling enemies in the way of Jesus |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10414
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Forum: Day 15: PROTECTION Posted: Mon Mar 24, 2008 10:35 pm Subject: Trampling enemies in the way of Jesus |
I am deeply moved by the example of Rabbi Leo Baeck – who voluntarily admitted himself into a concentration camp during the Holocaust to help his fellow Jews. What a stellar example of the cou ... |
Topic: Convicted and conflicted |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10573
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Forum: Day 11: Gathering the Scattered Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2008 11:25 am Subject: Convicted and conflicted |
The reading for this day leaves me feeling both convicted and conflicted. Like Said, I easily become distracted from my flock-tending responsibilities – and I need to hear words like, “D ... |
Topic: Echoing the voice of the Good Shepherd |
Brent Kipfer
Replies: 0
Views: 10634
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Forum: Day 10: Lost and Found Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 9:54 pm Subject: Echoing the voice of the Good Shepherd |
I am challenged by Mrs. Aref’s relentless search for her lost sheep. She was successful because of her persistence, presence and word. I am particularly impressed by the way that her lost ewe ... |
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