What better person to talk with about the reservoir of courage than Dr. Gil Rendle, whose book Quietly Courageous has profoundly impacted our work and the work of many leaders in ministry and beyond. He is a retired Senior Vice President and part-time consultant with The Texas Methodist Foundation in Austin, Texas and an independent consultant working with issues of change and leadership in denominations.

Rendle has an extensive background in organizational development, group and systems theory, and leadership development. He has consulted with congregations on planning, staff and leadership development, and issues of change. He is well known for his work with middle judicatory and national denominational offices and staff as they wrestle with denominational and congregational change.

There is no doubt that courage is required for leaders today, and Gil does an excellent job in the book and in our conversation with offering provocative takeaways for leaders on how to lead with courage in such a time like this. You may want to have your notepad ready for this conversation with Gil, this episode is packed with practical ideas for becoming a courageous leader in your context.

QUOTES

“That is one of the things about temptations. They do feel very rich and rewarding, but actually you’re feeding off yourself.” -Dr. Gil Rendle [26:12]
“If you’re a leader, you have to learn how to stand in the center and move at least one foot towards the edge.” -Dr. Gil Rendle [31:40]

TIMESTAMPS

[00:00] Intro
[00:24] Bishop Huie reads from Reservoirs of Resilience
[03:40] An excerpt of Bishop Huie’s writing on the reservoir of courage
[06:32] Meet Gil Rendle
[07:46] The connection between courage and resilience
[09:34] What is quiet courage
[13:57] Disturb the system and ask questions
[19:41] Relationship between conversation, quiet courage and purpose
[24:45] Temptations leaders face and how to recognize and not give into them
[29:13] Quiet courage and focusing on the edge
[33:58] Guidance for congregation leaders
[36:22] Rapid fire round with three sentences
[37:57] Bishop Huie’s reflections and takeaways
[41:22] Outro

RESOURCES & RELEVANT LINKS

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Today’s episode included conversation based on insights from Gil Rendle’s most recent book Quietly Courageous: Leading the Church in a Changing World. Gil can be reached at GRendle@tmf-fdn.org

Reservoirs of Resilience is inspired by the monograph written by Bishop Janice Huie. Read the full publication here.

"That's Something" music and lyrics by Billy Crockett, © 2016 Spare Room Music, BMI, from the album In Session (with Roscoe Beck), Blue Rock Artists, 2020

"Resilience" music by Billy Crockett, © 2021 Spare Room Music, BMI

This podcast is brought to you by TMF’s Leadership Ministry. Leadership Ministry connects diverse, high capacity leaders in conversations and environments that create a network of courage, learning, and innovation in order to help the church lean into its God-appointed mission. For more information and to support TMF’s Leadership Ministry, visit https://tmf-fdn.org/leadership-ministry.

A Multidimensional Universe In Our Minds