Pastoral care – hearing and listening well

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An important part of offering pastoral care is the need to listen and hear well.  Here are a few further thoughts on this. Prepare well.  Prior to meeting up make sure you are aware of what the context and purpose of your time together is. It is often helpful to have thought through some specific… Continue reading Pastoral care – hearing and listening well

Blocked

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If you are on social media then you are probably familiar with the idea of being able to “block” someone. The function is available on facebook and twitter. Blocking means that they can no longer see your messages or interact with you. On Twitter it means that you won’t initially see their tweets though you… Continue reading Blocked

Giving advice

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Here are some thoughts on giving advice and opinions, especially in a church context. The first thing to say is that it is best not to offer unsolicited advice, it is very rarely welcome. Indeed, often when people tell you something, they are not particularly looking for advice. They are looking for three things The… Continue reading Giving advice

Are you even listening?

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Heed Wisdom’s Call (Proverbs 1:20-33) “I’ve had enough of you!” The preacher bellowed. Then he seemed to completely lose it!  He began to single out members of the congregation, getting them to stand up and then denouncing them in front of their friends and family. They were ignorant, foolish, lazy, refused to listen, showed no… Continue reading Are you even listening?