Discover who you really are?

Regrettably starting something "new" has invariably necessitated leaving something old. Saul's, rather than Abraham's spirit has tended to predominate as doors slam to the rebuke of "Absalom" and the leavers retort "Laban" as the speckled ones follow behind, with Rachel clutching the idols. Women are dubbed 'Jezebel' for the heinous crime of having a mind of their own and not being afraid to speak it.

Sadly much of the bad blood that has been generated is because church leaders have concentrated on routing out the dissidents rather than addressing their own dissonance. Wherever possible we must learn not to cut what we can untie.

Now we are talking about a new way of shepherding, Not a new way of getting people to do stuff in church but a new way of empowering and enabling people to participate in the Kingdom. One of the most obvious points is that we are called to lead people not drive them. The difference is more than semantic. Driven people drive people and in the pastoral life this is a major issue.

Many of us bear the scars of a life lived with in or home, church or work lives where we have been conscious that we're being driven to succeed because our parents, pastors or bosses were trying to prove something and validate themselves rather than empower us to simply express ourselves and become all that we can be.

People who lead in this way are dissonant. They drive people too hard, for the wrong reasons and in wrong directions.

The truth is that most of the people that have hurt us haven't set out to cause us harm, they've simply been caught up with an endless need to feel good about themselves.

Worse most of them are blissfully unaware of the emotional damage that they cause.

Interestingly in church circles we've all but completely ignored the importance of our leaders needing to be resonant men and women who have developed emotional and spiritual intelligence.

Too few of our leaders are awake fewer still aware and hardly any attuned to themselves, others and the world around them.

I feel that if we're to begin repairing the damage that has been done to so many of us in church life needs to begin with those of us who are called to lead coming to wholeness and beginning to understand oneness.

To realise our oneness we must do something other than simply read our Bible. For all the undoubted good that can do its just head knowledge. I think we all know that knowledge puffs up what we need is love because love build up and that we get not from studying the words of God written to men (the bible), we get that from abiding in the Word of God living in men(Jesus).

Great leaders are transformed and have the capacity to transform others creating hope and happiness in those they lead. When we finally figure out that Jesus is in residence then that will be the first step on our road to resonance.

Agape