Category: Unit 2

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Response to Jessica Sawatzky: Light from many Lamps

Light from many Lamps

Jessica, your post on Henry Francis Lyte helped me remember that failure is much more common than we’d like to admit. More than that, failure is much more powerful than we would typically like when we the impression in the world around us is that success after success is what we should expect.

“Failure has a funny way of bringing out the best in us (Sawatzky, 2018)”. So true. Perhaps not in the moment – the immediate result of failure is likely to be something we are probably not proud of – but over time the deep change that happens through failure leads to growth, development and, ultimately, success.

I also so appreciated your description of the powerful memories triggered by music. As a musician I have had the privilege of leading funerals where singing familiar songs has had a similar resonance for people. Music is an incredibly powerful tool which can embed and surface significant emotions for us.

Reference
Sawatzky, Jessica. (2018, October 9). Light from many Lamps. Retrieved from https://create.twu.ca/jessicalaugsawatzky/2018/10/09/light-from-many-lamps/

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Response to B121: Light From Many Lamps – Part 1

Light From Many Lamps – Part 1

B, I really appreciated your reflection and I can appreciate your current challenges.

“This story served as a reminder that a leader does not lose hope.” Thank you for sharing this great reminder. I needed it today!

Hope is a priceless resource which can’t be bought but needs to be a reality for leaders and needs to be instilled in those we lead. Your post led me to think about how I am instilling hope in those around me as I lead and whether I am adding currency to the hope account or making withdrawals.

And even when hope is not abundant, the most reassuring truth for me is that the presence of God and His faithfulness means we can always find hope in every situation. Even when we are hopeless, we have the opportunity to hope in God and put our trust in Him.

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Light from Many Lamps – Unit 2

Taking time to read these stories, reflect on their significance and, with encouragement from the assignment instructions, to savour the content of the first two sections of Lillian Eichler Watson’s Light from Many Lamps (1951) has been a sweet, serene, refreshing experience. The ability of stories to help us see beyond our current situation is often undervalued. I am quite happy to be reading these stories as part of the work for this course but also as a significant time for my own heart and soul.

The story of Sarah Flower Adams (Watson, 1951, p. 45) was particularly meaningful for me to remember we all have the opportunity to turn the negative of our own suffering into an enduring positive for the world around us. “Weaving the pattern of her own life story into a familiar scriptural background, Sarah Flower Adams produced a hymn of enduring beauty – a hymn of hope and faith – an inspiring source of comfort to millions” (p. 48).

Adams is best known and remembered for her work as the author of the lyrics to Nearer, my God, to Thee, inspired by her own failing health and the suffering she experienced. “She would write a poem about it, showing how our very suffering and afflictions may be steps bringing us nearer to heaven . . . nearer to God” (p.46). The words of this particular hymn have been sung around the world by generations of people needing to find comfort and reassurance in their own suffering.

No life, including my own, is exempt from suffering. The reminder from this story is that nothing is wasted, even suffering! Illness inspired these words which now have brought peace and comfort to millions of people, even those aboard the Titanic as it sank (p. 48).

The other reminder is for me as a leader. Those around me who are enduring suffering have value and significance to add to the larger community. They are more than their illness or their bankruptcy or their divorce. Even as people are going through hard times and difficult circumstances, they are valuable, loved, cherished members of the community and have so much good to offer the world.

Reference
Watson, L.E. (1951). Light from Many Lamps. New York: Simon and Schuster.

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LDRS 500 – Unit 2, Learning Activity 3

Seeing results of leadership assessments is like hearing your own voice recorded on video. I hear my own leadership voice all the time but reading these assessments lets me hear it presented back to me in a way that gives an opportunity for reflection, critique, development and change.

Overall, it is no surprise that I score higher on task style and conceptual skill in the Style Questionnaire and Leadership Theory and Practice. Results from the Leadership Trait Questionnaire are the most examined since they come from people who know me well and are impacted daily by my leadership.

I’m motivated in my desire to focus on the relational side of my own leadership while not neglecting the good impact which comes from strength areas. My hope in taking on this program in leadership is to see my leadership tool belt grow.

At the same time, I’m encouraged that those I asked to give feedback through the Leadership Trait Questionnaire were more generous in rating my strengths and less critical of my weaknesses. Healthy critique of one’s own strengths and weakness is a good reminder that those we lead are usually more generous and gracious with us than we are of ourselves!