Ever becoming (Cultivating a growth identity)

Congratulations to Education for Ministry graduates. This past June, we were pleased to have five graduates from our Classic Education for Ministry in Huron and our first EfM Wide-Angle graduate. Classic Education graduates are Fran Rinker, Marion Bailey, Lori Ann Kuchocki, Kara Robinson and Tana Clark. Wide-Angle graduate: Jackie Dix Jackson.

Photo: From the St Jude’s Tuesday morning Group from left to right: Mentor Sharon Frank, Graduates Fran Rinker, Marion Bailey and Lori Ann Kuchocki, Val Kenyon EfM Animator for Huron and Huron’s EfM Co-ordinator Libi Clifford.

And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord,
are being transformed into the same image
from one degree of glory to another.
2 Corinthians 3:18

By Rev. Canon Val Kenyon

AS WE SETTLE into this new edition of the Huron Church News, we are all aware that September is upon us.

With a turn of the calendar page, we find ourselves in a full and delightful month, where we are met with the coolness in the morning air, the many appeals to get ready for another year at school for children and grandchildren complete with new clothes, new books, and new devices. As we reconnect with our parish families, many of us having stepped away for different weeks in the summer, we re-enter into all the projects and the programmes in our churches as the cycle of our year brings us back again to this point that can be both familiar and yet also new.

I recently came across the author Kyle J.A. Small, who was writing on the topic of best leadership practices. What caught my attention was his emphasis on the practice of “cultivating a growth identity”. 

As disciples of Jesus our identity is, of course, as Kyle affirms, rooted in God, not in our accomplishments, our failures, or our judgments. He would go on to say that our spiritual formation, our growth identity, is supported in its development as we increase in curiosity, complexity, compassion and contemplation. Take a moment and consider these words … curiosity, complexity, compassion and contemplation! The importance of making space in our lives for each of these qualities felt like such a September type of encouragement.

Growth in faith is most often nurtured when we intentionally place ourselves in settings where questions are welcomed, where we encounter perspectives different from our own, and where we are invited to reflect more deeply on God's presence in our lives and in the world around us. Curiosity opens us to learning, complexity reminds us that faith is richer than simple answers, compassion calls us into deeper relationships with others, and contemplation creates space to listen for God's voice.

These are all hallmarks of a growing Christian life, one where we offer ourselves to God and to one another in the hope of ongoing transformation … from glory to glory. The truth is we are never done learning. We are always becoming, up to our final breath.

As the new groups of EfM are forming this month for both our one-year Wide Angle Programme and Classic EfM, please consider how Education for Ministry might be a part of your becoming this Fall as we continue to cultivate a growth identity rooted in God. We are always pleased to talk with you about the possibilities.

For any additional information, or to arrange an information session that works for you or your group, we are just a phone call or an email away. Please contact Libi Clifford, the Diocese of Huron EfM Coordinator, or me, Val Kenyon, at EFM@huron.anglican.ca.

Rev. Canon Dr. Val Kenyon is EFM Animator in Huron. EfM@huron.anglican.ca