Ten Principles of Health and Disease-Page 15

1. Wholeness is not attainable. (But it can be approximated.)
2. Illness is the necessary complement to health. (It is all right to be sick, feel burdened, and be down.)
3. The body has innate healing abilities. (No one can give you - or the congregation - what you don't already have.)
4. Agents of disease are not causes of disease. (All disease processes are enabled.)
5. All illness is biopsychosocial. (Wow! Everything is connected.)
6. The subtle precedes the gross. (Early detection is the best treatment.)
7. Every body is different. (There's no universal treatment for every organism - or congregation.)
8. A healthy circulatory system is the keystone of health and healing. (Feedback systems promote health.)
9. Breathing properly is nourishing to the whole body. (The Spirit must be active among the members of the body of Christ.)
10. The brain is the largest secreting organ of the body, the health maintenance organization (HMO) of the body. (The mind converts ideas into biochemical realities.)

Seven Promoters of Congregational Health-Page 26ff.

1. Sense of Purpose
The human body is a purposeful organization. The body's parts must function in balance to preserve its very existence. Its surest tendency is to move toward health.

2. Appraise and Manage Conflict
Healthy congregations use their resources and strengths to manage conflict. They do not let conflict fester. They have the wisdom to face the tensions and stresses that befall all living systems. Included in this characteristic is a "sense of coherence" which is composed of three interrelated parts:

A. Meaningfulness: A congregation has an overall sense of purpose. The people are willing to take up a challenge. Because life matters, they involve themselves in what is done. They make a commitment because a situation is worthy of investment. They believe the outcome of their response is of value.

B. Manageability: A congregation has a sense of control, a sense of being able to influence events. The people believe they can, as far as possible, shape their destiny. They believe the resources are available to act effectively. They believe their response will lead to valued outcome.

C. Comprehensibility: A congregation judges reality soundly. Knowing there is little danger in viewing the world as a challenge, they must make sense of confusion and change. They use information as a stimulus for growth. They believe the valued outcome will be health promoting.

3. Clarity
One thing the physical body is quite clear about is what is self and what is not self. The entire immune system devotes itself to preserving the body's integrity. Likewise, healthy congregations are always working on clarity, whether clarity of beliefs, direction, or responsibility.

4. Mood and Tone
Moods, attitudes, beliefs, and feelings can affect the body. Mind moves matter. Consciousness interacts with cells. Mood and tone affect organizations as well. Better functioning congregations are more energized.

5. Mature Interaction
The body, being a part of nature, needs time. It participates in seasons, rhythms, and growth processes. Indeed, the body functions more like a garden than a machine, though the opposite is commonly believed.

6. Healing Capacities
Healing is the body's potential to repair and regenerate itself. The body can heal itself because it has a healing system.

7. A Focus on Resources
Healthy congregations focus on the healing resources, not the disease process.

The Core-Page 41ff.
Congregations are unique and complex. Yet all congregations are working with a small set of core issues:

> mission and how to achieve it
> strengths and resources and how to implement them
> anxiety and how to mange it
> wholeness and how to maintain it

Struggling ineffectively with one or more of the core issues, congregations can put their health at risk We will examine four at-risk conditions for congregations:

overfocusing on clergy at the expense of mission
giving inadequate attention to painful events to the detriment of healing capacities
adapting to weakness at the cost of integrity
taking sides and hostages at the expense of the hard tasks of love

 

Functional Range-Page 97ff.
What, then, should we look for in the functioning of a leader? The following lists summarize the range between undifferentiation and differentiation.

Undifferentiation

Opts for Certainty: Uses black/white thinking (psychologist Alfred Adler refers to either/or thinking as a form of arrested development, the way children think); wants quick fix; pushes for resolution to ease own discomfort with emotional pain, ambiguity, or cognitive dissonance.

Avoids Self: Resists insights; lacks awareness of self; behaves more reactively and mindlessly; has fewer responses available to handle life.

Looks Outside of Self: Takes little responsibility for self and blames others; sees only what is exterior (anxiety forces one to observe threat, condition, what is outside of self); has little sense of connectedness and the mutual influence of behavior.

Forces Others to Adapt: Functions willfully (one way or no way); pushes and pulls on almost anything; wants others to change; coerces or manipulates.

Seeks Cessation of Pain: Shifts own anxiety to others; blames, accuses, and whines; seeks to eliminate person/event that activates one's own anxiety.

Differentiation

Takes a stand: Works on self-definition; functions on basis of values, principles, and beliefs; knows what one believes, stays the course, and commits to the process.

Focuses on Self: Increases self-awareness; looks at own "stuckness"; modifies own exaggeration of instinctual forces (anxiety); attends to own behavior; makes changes in self.

Stays Connected to Others: Sees life organically ("members of one another"); tolerates differences; encourages dialogue.

Sets Clear Goals: Defines self from within, not over against others; knows where one is going; maintains larger view; lives with a purpose in mind; seeks clarity.

Accepts Challenge: Moves forward; stretches; knows that "pain" arises when one leads; stays focused on conviction and direction.

Copyright ©2002 by Wade Hodges, All Rights Reserved