Posts by Transforming Center
BONUS: Ask Ruth #5 Excerpt
Over on Patreon, we concluded season 16 with our fifth installment of our Ask Ruth series. This episode included questions specific to this past season on Transforming Leadership: Managing Anxiety Within Our Communities with Steve Cuss. Patrons submitted questions that arose from their listening of the podcast, and Ruth provided her trademark thoughtfulness, wit and…
Read MoreJuneteenth: Celebrating the Good News of Freedom
Where the Spirit of the Lord there is freedom. II Corinthians 3:17 Today as we mark the Juneteenth national holiday, we invite you to reflect on this documentary that expands our awareness of our nation’s journey towards freedom for all. This documentary was produced through a partnership between the Jude 3 Project and Our Daily…
Read MoreSeason 16: Episode 8 | Systems Theory and Leadership: Picking Up the Tools that Diffuse Anxiety
We’re nearing the end of our season on Systems Theory and leadership anxiety! In this last episode with Ruth and Steve together, the two give really practical help with concrete tools that can help diffuse anxiety. These tools range from personal to relational, and they are rooted in deep care for the soul of the…
Read MoreSeason 16: Episode 7 | It’s a Human Thing: Systems Theory in Non-Majority Spaces
This week we invited two additional guests to tackle this tender and challenging topic. Ruth and Steve are joined by Pastor Tina Harris, a former pastor and lawyer and currently Transforming Center’s Cultivator of Community and Connection, and Pastor Marvin Williams, the pastor of Trinity Church in Lansing, MI, and a doctoral candidate doing his…
Read MoreSeason 16: Episode 6 | Second Order Change: Recognizing and Dissolving Stuck Patterns
Sometimes our greatest anxieties can surround areas of stuckness, places where we know what we are doing isn’t working, but we can’t seem to find our way out. This week, Ruth and Steve will discuss second order change and how we can recognize and dissolve our stuck patterns. How does paying attention to process over…
Read MoreSeason 16: Episode 5 | The Freedom of Taking Responsibility
This week, Ruth and Steve are talking about differentiation. What is differentiation and how does it differ from individualism? Steve shares his framework of the Four Spaces and explains how paying attention to these spaces can help us differentiate and understand what is happening in a group. As we wrapped up, Steve shared a few…
Read MoreSeason 16: Episode 4 | Calm Presence: Leadership, Anxiety, and the False Self
Ruth and guest Steve Cuss continue to explore Systems Theory. This week they look at leadership, anxiety, and the false self. What are some examples of false selves and false beliefs and how do they relate to anxiety? What is the calm presence? Ruth and Steve’s conversation covers all this and more, including an invitation…
Read MoreSeason 16: Episode 3 | The Sins of the Fathers (and Mothers): How Family of Origin Impacts Our Leadership
This week, Ruth and Steve delve into the topic of family of origin and its impact on leadership. Why do we need to do the messy work of untangling our childhood issues? How do we carry childhood wounds into our leadership? How can genograms help us do this work? Ruth and Steve share their thoughts…
Read MoreSeason 16: Episode 2 | The Most Powerful Leadership Tool: Diagnosing and Diffusing Anxiety
Welcome to Season 16, Transforming Leadership: Managing Anxiety Within Our Communities. This season we will be exploring Systems Theory, also called Family Systems Theory. Many of us have seen the troubling Barna research about the extreme levels of burnout pastors are experiencing right now. As we look at Systems theory, we will be examining how…
Read MoreSeason 16: Episode 1 | What’s Really Going On? Systems Theory and the Soul of Leadership
Welcome to Season 16, Transforming Leadership: Managing Anxiety Within Our Communities. This season we will be exploring Systems Theory, also called Family Systems Theory. Many of us have seen the troubling Barna research about the extreme levels of burnout pastors are experiencing right now. As we look at Systems theory, we will be examining how…
Read MoreSeason 15: Easter Monday | Practicing Resurrection
We couldn’t leave you hanging in the darkness of Good Friday, so to wrap up season 15 of the podcast we are concluding with a conversation about Easter and the Resurrection. Ruth and Steve discuss the story of Mary and the empty tomb and what it reveals about the new order Jesus wants to bring.…
Read MoreSeason 15: Holy Week | Following Jesus All the Way
Ruth and Steve guide us into Holy Week with the reminder of the importance of keeping vigil and a discussion on the temptation to fall asleep. In what ways do we turn our gaze away from that which is difficult to see? What does it mean to keep vigil with Jesus and how is it…
Read MoreSeason 15: Lent Week 6 | Living Between Two Passions
We have arrived at Palm Sunday and this week Ruth and Steve discuss the disorienting swing the people create between hailing Jesus as King and calling for his crucifixion in a matter of days. It brought us to wonder, in what ways do we create our own agendas to put on Jesus, and how do…
Read MoreSeason 15: Lent Week 5 | Out With the Old, In With the New
We seem to be turning a corner during this week of Lent! Ruth and Steve discuss the lectionary readings for the fifth Sunday of Lent and the call to prepare ourselves for whatever new things God desires to do in us. This requires us to resist the temptation to cling to the past. In this…
Read MoreSeason 15: Lent Week 4 | The Power of Confession
This week’s temptation may bring us to the hardest, deepest places of Lent. We are talking about the temptation to be silent about our sin and the power of the practice of confession. Why are leaders especially tempted to hide our wrongdoings, and how can we use confession carefully, lovingly and honestly in our lives?…
Read MoreSeason 15: Lent Week 3 | Seeking God While He May Be Found
This week Ruth and Steve address the temptation to invest in that which does not satisfy. So many of us leaders find ourselves turning towards escapist behaviors in our exhaustion and grief. How do we discern between what is distracting and what is satisfying? How can we abstain in order to give time to that…
Read MoreSeason 15: Lent Week 2 | Consenting to God’s Will Deep Within
What is it about leaders that we seem to struggle so much with the temptation to take matters into our own hands and “help” God out when we distrust His plans or when we are impatient with His timing? And what is our transformational moment when we realize we’ve been pushing our own agenda and…
Read MoreSeason 15: Lent Week 1 | Fashioning Our Own Wilderness
Ruth Haley Barton and Steve Weins will journey through Lent with a spirit of self-examination and desire for intimacy with God. Each episode will highlight a particular temptation found in one of the passages from Cycle C of the Revised Common Lectionary for Lent that is relevant for leaders today and Ruth and Steve will…
Read MoreLent 2022 Teaser | Lent for Leaders: With God in the Wilderness
Our next podcast season begins on Ash Wednesday! Season 15 will help us walk through Lent together. Steve Weins is back with Ruth and together the two will tackle this time that invites us to self-examination and intimacy with God. In this teaser episode, Ruth and Steve will share their hearts for this season of…
Read MoreBONUS: A Conversation with Rory Noland about Transforming Worship
Please enjoy another bonus conversation about worship, this time with our friend and former Transforming Community worship leader, Rory Noland. Rory has a new book out called Transforming Worship: Planning and Leading Sunday Services as if Spiritual Formation Mattered. He and Ruth sat down to discuss the book as well as their long history and…
Read MoreA Conversation with Aaron Niequist about Fixed Hour Prayer and Transforming Community 18
Please enjoy this bonus episode, a conversation between Ruth Haley Barton and Aaron Niequist, recorded at the Becoming A Transforming Church retreat. Ruth and Aaron discuss Aaron’s experience as both a participant and worship leader of Transforming Communities and the ways in which worship and fixed hour of prayer contributed to his journey in community.…
Read MoreSeason 14: Advent Week 4 | Saying Yes to God
This season we invite you to walk through Advent by engaging with the lectionary Scripture readings and listening for what God might want to say through them. In each episode, Ruth and members of the Transforming Center staff will read and reflect on the themes of Cycle C of the Revised Common Lectionary for Advent…
Read MoreSeason 14: Advent Week 3 | A Call to Repentance
This season we invite you to walk through Advent by engaging with the lectionary Scripture readings and listening for what God might want to say through them. In each episode, Ruth and members of the Transforming Center staff will read and reflect on the themes of Cycle C of the Revised Common Lectionary for Advent…
Read MoreJoe’s story: The impact of a Transforming Community in the life of a pastor
Pastor Joseph Nieves (TC16) shares how he found the Transforming Center and the impact Transforming Community 16 had on his personal life and his ministry. After 20 years of ministry, I hit a wall in my spiritual life and discovered that I was burned out. Outwardly, I was doing incredibly well and appeared successful. However, it…
Read MoreSeason 14: Episode 2 | Advent Week 2 | Necessary Preparations
This season we invite you to walk through Advent by engaging with the lectionary Scripture readings and listening for what God might want to say through them. In each episode, Ruth and members of the Transforming Center staff will read and reflect on the themes of Cycle C of the Revised Common Lectionary for Advent…
Read MoreSeason 14: Episode 1 | Advent Week 1 | The Darkness of Waiting
This season we invite you to walk through Advent by engaging with the lectionary Scripture readings and listening for what God might want to say through them. In each episode, Ruth and members of the Transforming Center staff will read and reflect on the themes of Cycle C of the Revised Common Lectionary for Advent…
Read MoreUpdated Advent Reflections For Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary
This beautiful 40 page Advent resource written by Ruth Haley Barton is designed to help individuals, spiritual friends, small groups and even congregations walk through the four Sundays of Advent together. A perfect tool to introduce people to the practice of following the lectionary through the seasons of the Church year, that begins with a longer…
Read MoreBONUS: A Conversation about Becoming a Transforming Church
In this special bonus episode, we are sharing a conversation with Biz Gainey, a pastor and long-time Transforming Community alum, about his experience leading a Transforming Church. The Becoming a Transforming Church Retreat has equipped him and his team to foster a community that gathers around the presence of Christ for the purpose of spiritual transformation…
Read MoreSeason 13: Episode 12 | Invitation to the Most Excellent Way
On this last episode of season 13, listen as Ruth and Adele discuss God’s invitation to the most excellent way: love. Using 1 Corinthians 13 as a guide, they examine the counterfeits of love as well as love’s litmus tests. We close with an opportunity to reflect on all the invitations covered in this season…
Read MoreSeason 13: Episode 11 | Invitation to Remember
In this week’s conversation, Ruth and Adele explore the invitation to remember. They discuss how we remember, the forces that shape our narratives around our memories, God’s invitation to allow our memories to uncover truths about the present day, and the discipline of remembering God’s goodness and faithfulness. God’s invitation to remember, both the good…
Read MoreTransforming Center Accredited by National Financial Accountability Organization
The ECFA (Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability) announced on August 19, 2021 the accreditation of Transforming Center of Wheaton, IL. ECFA accreditation is based on the ECFA Seven Standards of Responsible Stewardship™, including financial accountability, transparency, sound board governance and ethical fundraising. “The application process to be an ECFA member was very thorough. We presented…
Read MoreSeason 13: Episode 10 | Invitation to Pray
In this episode, Ruth and Adele use the Lord’s Prayer to examine God’s invitation to prayer. They share what God is currently calling each of them to as it pertains to prayer. How does the “Our” in the opening line “Our Father” call us to “a seismic shift in orientation” and what does it mean…
Read MoreSeason 13: Episode 9 | Invitation to Wait
This week Ruth and Adele discuss God’s invitation to wait. They process the difference between good waiting and bad waiting and ask what waiting exposes in us? The two also examine when waiting is avoidance, particularly as it pertains to justice and how to discern when to wait and when to act. Finally, they also…
Read MoreSeason 13: Episode 8 | Invitation to Forgive
The invitation to forgive is one of our most weighty invitations, as Ruth and Adele will explore. In this conversation, they will put some definitions around forgiveness, reconciliation, and how our narratives and facts are involved when it comes to the process of forgiveness. They share wisdom for when forgiveness is needed but not offered…
Read MoreSeason 13: Episode 7 | Invitation to Admit I Might Be Wrong
The invitation in this episode may be our most challenging yet: God’s invitation to admit I might be wrong. Why is it so hard to admit that we may be wrong and how does shame keep us from this invitation? Ruth and Adele discuss the invitation to teachability, confession, discerning when to allow space to…
Read MoreTransforming Center welcomes Executive Director and creates new position, Director of Strategy and Programs
Following a significant search characterized by disciplined discernment, the Transforming Center board is thrilled to announce Rev. Cole Griffin (TC2) as our new Executive Director along with Charity Barton McClure (TC12) in a newly created role as Director of Strategy and Programs. By way of introduction…. We have known Cole Griffin since he participated in…
Read MoreSeason 13: Episode 6 | Invitation to Weep
In this week’s episode, Ruth and Adele discuss God’s invitation to weep. Listen as the two cover the gift of tears, as well as what makes it hard to weep. As we come out of the pandemic it may be easy to miss this invitation in favor of celebrating our ability to return to the…
Read MoreSeason 13: Episode 5 | Invitation to Rest
In this episode, Ruth and Adele respond to God’s invitation to rest. They acknowledge the fears and cultural rewards that keep us from resting and examine what freedoms we might have found during the pandemic that we want to carry with us into a new season as it pertains to rest. And finally, they discuss…
Read MoreInvitation to Solitude & Silence Licensed to SPCK Publishing
Invitation to Solitude and Silence now has released in the United Kingdom and is now part of the growing list of Transforming Resources published around the world. This translation comes with a new forward (below) written by Rev. Canon Mike Pilavachi. Connecting with God amid the demands and noise of daily life Rev. Canon Mike…
Read MoreSeason 13: Episode 4 | Invitation to Practice the Presence of People
This week Ruth and Adele are breaking down the invitation to practice the presence of people. What does it mean to “shine your face upon someone” and why is our physical presence so important? Listen as Ruth and Adele tackle the notion of “relationship quotas” and share their thoughts on how to respond to this…
Read MoreSeason 13: BONUS Episode | Ask Ruth Teaser
For this special bonus episode, we wanted to give all of our listeners a peek into what is happening over on Patreon. This is a short sample of our bonus “Ask Ruth” series where patrons get the opportunity to ask Ruth questions and hear her responses in an exclusive to patrons episode. In this episode,…
Read MoreSeason 13: Episode 3 | Invitation to Follow
Listen as Ruth and Adele use the invitation from chapter two of Invitations from God to examine the ways following and leadership are connected in the life of Christ and what it means to steward your following well. What do we do when the leaders we follow disappoint and how does this invitation to follow…
Read MoreSeason 13: Episode 2 | Invitation to Participate in Your Own Healing
In this episode, Ruth and Adele discuss chapter 1, Invitation to Participate in Your Own Healing. Ruth and Adele cover everything from the particular wounds we have encountered societally over the past year-and-a-half to how to identify participation in our healing versus passively waiting for something to happen to us. Learn what happens when we…
Read MoreSeason 13: Episode 1 | Invitations from God: What are God’s Invitations?
Welcome to season 13! Ruth is spending this season with her dear friend and fellow spiritual director, Adele Calhoun, discussing Adele’s book Invitations from God. The invitations outlined in this book are particularly relevant to us now, as we emerge from what has been a life-shaping season. In this first episode listen as Ruth and…
Read MoreSeason 13 Teaser + New Patron Program
Season 13 of the Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership podcast is just around the corner! Join us on June 23 as we kick off a new season with Ruth’s friend and fellow spiritual director Adele Calhoun. In this special teaser episode hear Ruth and Steve share what’s in store for season 13 and learn…
Read MoreTen years later, I am still in ministry!
Note: What is the long-term impact of the Transforming Community experience in the lives of leaders? Pastor and law enforcement chaplain, John Knox (TC6), shares the impact of his Transforming Community experience. Ten years ago, I had it all figured out. Ten years ago, I had been in fulltime ministry for twenty-four years, but I…
Read MoreSponsorship – Receiving the Gift of Transforming Community
Words from those who have been sponsored in Transforming Community… If you received financial assistance making it possible for you to join a Transforming Community, please share what the gift of sponsorship or scholarship meant to you and the impact that this community experience has had on your life and in your ministry. Use the…
Read MoreSeason 12: Episode 7 | Principles of the Deeper Life
Ruth and Steve conclude this season with some practical advice and discussing a persistent practice for leaders. How do we detach ourselves from all that is not God to attach ourselves to all that is God? A powerful conclusion for leaders who long to be in God for the world. We are grateful for Bob…
Read MoreLamenting the Atlanta shootings
In this ongoing series we reflect on the spiritual truths and principles that undergird the fight for racial justice, the Spirit that animates the fight and the spiritual practices that will sustain us in this very human struggle. No one post will be the full word or the last word, but taken together, diverse voices will seek…
Read MoreSeason 12: Episode 6 | Putting on the New Nature
Putting off the vices of the old self is only half the equation. We are to put off the old nature and put on the new nature. A great conversation flows around rest and sabbath, forbearance, and forgiveness. A helpful conversation for leaders today. Support the podcast now and immediately receive our Lent bonus Podcast…
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