ACMN Blog

In June I reflected on the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model I had been exposed to at the Resilience and Well-being in Ministry intensive at Ridley College in Melbourne in February.[1] I am still reflecting on the relationship between spiritual resources and occupational well-being and how we tend foster spiritual practices in difficult seasons only to let them slip when the difficult season has passed.

Continue reading “Self-deception and Self-awareness in Ministry”

Depending on what sort of mentoring you do, the financial life of your mentee may or may not be a topic of conversation.

For those of us who mentor young adults just starting out in the world, finances often come up naturally—budgeting for the first time, learning how to save, or navigating debt. For those walking alongside people further down the road, it may not surface as often. And yet, for those mentoring people in Christian ministry, finances are frequently a source of stress. Living on a small budget is sometimes a reality, and money worries can become a hidden burden.

Continue reading “Talking About Personal Finances With Your Mentoree”

Hope is a powerful force. When people possess hope they are more resilient, creative, positive and diligent. With hope, we can keep going through tough times. Without it, we tend to fall into despair and a sense of powerlessness. Because it’s so powerful, people will grasp for hope wherever they can find it. But if that hope turns out to have no foundation, the end result can be devastating. As a mentor, I want to strengthen hope in those I serve. But I know I need to be careful not to encourage false hope. Continue reading “Strengthening Hope”

In February I completed the Resilience and Well-being in Ministry intensive that Grant Bickerton teaches at Ridley College in Melbourne. Grant is a psychologist who serves with Power to Change Australia.^[1] Grant has extended the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model^[2] to include spiritual resources and has researched the relationship between spiritual resources and work engagement.

Continue reading “Resilience and Well-being in Ministry”

Empathy is a human superpower, isn’t it?

I was in a seminar recently in which we were discussing the possible usefulness of Artificial Intelligence in mentoring, and even whether AI could take over the role of a mentor. AI is certainly a powerful tool, and it’s coming, ready or not, into all of our lives. It’s great at summarising large quantities of input, it handles routine IT/administrative tasks extraordinarily quickly (as long as you can tell it precisely what you require done) and can bring to your attention points of view you might not have thought of. You have to watch it though. Generative AI isn’t great at distinguishing between facts and plausible possibilities.

Continue reading “Empathy is a human superpower”

Last November, Em and I led a Members’ Networking zoom on the topic of Neurodiversity and mentoring. This came about through our observation that awareness and diagnosis of neurodivergence, particularly Autism and ADHD, seems to be increasing. More broadly, there seems to be a moment happening in the media with several recent TV shows featuring neurodivergence.  I’ve enjoyed watching shows like Love on the Spectrum and Austin. Aside from this moment in the media, I have a couple of friends recently receive diagnoses of ADHD as adults. I have family members on the autism spectrum and who have dyslexia and dyscalculia. I’ve also had a mentoree who I’ve been walking with over the last few years as she’s travelled the ADHD diagnosis journey.

Now as Em and I were discussing how to approach this topic, she reminded me of the very helpful phrase “Nothing about us without us”. Continue reading “Neurodiversity and Mentoring”

That Which Continues

I’m not going to lie, the sunset view from here is pretty great. Margaret River in the Southwest of WA is an exceptionally beautiful place to be spending the weekend – I’m surrounded by quiet, and green, and really good coffee shops.

Usually, the start of a new year has me full of plans, wonderings and optimism for the days ahead. I love the energy of beginnings. However, as I sit under the cooling canopy of these majestic trees this evening, I notice how the instability of recent world events and their echoes here in Australia have me more distracted than usual. I notice that my patience is thinner for tricky people, and as I breathe in the sea air and exhale, the tension in my shoulders and neck releases … and I realise it’s as if I’ve been bracing myself. The new, sparkly possibilities aren’t fuelling me in the same way this year, and I’m just not one to bury my head in the sand and pretend otherwise. So, what then? From where do I draw life and hope as a mentor at the start of 2025? Continue reading “That Which Continues”

Have you ever had a mentoree struggling with just not being as ‘sure’ in their Christian convictions as they once were? The label ‘deconstruction’ gets thrown about with alarm by some and is used to describe developments further along this continuum that could lead to people taking a break, or even leaving faith communities.

One the things we can do as mentors in this space is to normalise doubt. In popular opinion, doubt might be the opposite to faith. Not so in the life of many who persevere in the Christian life. For some doubt isn’t just a fleeting experience, but a longer term companion spurring deeper searching. Continue reading “Embracing Doubt in Christian Mentoring”

ACMN National Seminar – Strengths Based Mentoring – July 25, 2024

What an exciting time we shared as a community of practice as Christian mentors from across our nation! Almost 50 of us engaged on ZOOM from various different time zones (with others planning to catch up on the content later).

Key presenters Andy Goodacre, Kylie Butler and Sally Jones each shared with us from superbly integrated, yet different perspectives.

Continue reading “Reflections on our recent Training Day”

Many of us get our inspiration to mentor others from a strong desire to help people. While a noble motivation, this can easily slide into a rut of helping people overcome their problems. I’ve noticed that if I get stuck there, it limits the effectiveness of my mentoring.

Of course, there is much value in helping people explore the hindering forces in their lives that produce problems, but that’s just one side of the equation. By adding an equal emphasis on a person’s assets, strengths, experience – all the helping forces – we can get a much better picture of the situation. Forward momentum and the emergence of hope often depend on a better appreciation of what a person has going for them. Continue reading “Beyond Problems”