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In the Beginning was Love
For those unfamiliar with the Appreciative Way I have one question:
"What did Jesus come for?" Was it to bring us less death, or was it to give us life?
While the answer may seem obvious, that he came to bring us life, sadly the vast majority of our church and secular social programs are "less death" programs. We work really hard to have less of what we don't want, rather than work to grow more of what we do want. From my perspective, Jesus didn't come to make us less sinful, he came to set us free to love.
In many churches this Christmas the Prologue of John's Gospel will be read, with its familiar: "In the beginning was the Word... and the Word became flesh and lived among us."
It was and has remained my favorite passage of scripture, even my understanding and experience of its reality has deepened in my life.
To understand the passage, we need to think of the context and for whom it was written. John's disciples were Hellenized Jews. That is Jewish people who had been heavily influenced by Greek and especially Platonic thinking. What was scandalous in John's writing is the idea that the Divine Logos/Word that was beyond all material things has taken on flesh and become an earthly human being.
But now imagine if St. Paul had written the prologue, especially to his fellow Hebrews. I think he would have written: "In the beginning was the Christ... and the Christ became flesh and lived among us." Paul did not know the earthly Jesus. He met the Risen Christ on the Damascus Road and in most of his writings he refers to the Christ as the one through whom all things had been created. I can imagine many of Paul's readers would have been very challenged by the idea of this Cosmic Christ becoming a human and living and dying among us.
But what if John was writing to us today. We are not Greek nor Hebrew by way of philosophical or social understanding. So, what would John say in the Prologue that would make sense to us who live in an angry, divided, country and world. Here is what I think he would write:
In the beginning was Love, and Love was with God, and Love was God.
Love was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Love,
and without Love not one thing came into being.
What has come into being in Love was life, and this life was the light of all people.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him.
He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light.
The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.
He was in the world, and the world came into being through him;
yet the world did not know him.
He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him.
But to all who received him, who believed in his name,
he gave power to become children of God,
who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of Love.
And Love became flesh and lived among us,
and we have seen Love's glory, the glory as of God's beloved son, full of grace and truth.
At the core of the universe, of all creation, is Love. As our former Presiding Bishop Michael Curry would say: "If it is not about Love it is not about God." And if you want to know what love looks like, look no further than Jesus, love in human form.
In the midst of the darkness of this world, my prayer this Christmas for you, and those you love, and those you struggle to love, that together we would see and live in the Love, that shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome.
With Christmas Blessings
Rob Voyle
Director of the Appreciative Way.
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Webinar Training Update
Having spent the last two years since my retirement from parish ministry on sabbatical from most things church to do what I have left undone, I am now moving back into offering training in the
Appreciative Way.
Webinar Training Format
I will admit I am not a great fan of online training, especially ones with pre-recorded videos and materials that make us passive recipients of information. I do however love to teach and engage with participants. However, the associated costs of travel and accommodation make in-person training financially burdensome. So, I have completely revised my old webinars to new formats:
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All content is provided live online via zoom, with opportunity to interact between teacher and participants.
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Zoom content sessions will be limited to three hours with mid-session break per day.
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Zoom content sessions will be limited to twenty participants.
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Zoom sessions will be recorded for the benefit of the participants. For catch up purposes and not primary training.
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Each program will have an online classroom access to training manuals, and additional resources, including email dialogue with trainers and fellow participants beyond the live classes.
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I am still available to lead in-person workshops and retreats, especially the one-day programs such as Forgiveness Training and Retreats. Contact Rob Voyle by return email if you would like to host such programs in your congregation or organizational setting.
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Teach Them How to Forgive
3 Weekly online sessions:
Tuesday, January 14, 21, 28, 2025. 9:00 am -12 noon PST
Early Registration Price: $295.00
This program would be ideal if you are anticipating using
Teach Your Congregation to Forgive during Lent. Access to this resource is included in the price of the webinar.
"Jesus told us we need to forgive but he never taught us how." - Steve Andreas
This is NOT a class that tells people they should forgive. This class WILL teach you how to lead a person to a sustainable state of forgiveness.
Forgiving others is actually quite easy when you know how.
Sadly, many in our world and in our communities of faith do not know how.
One of the big contributors to this "not knowing how" is that words like resentment, forgiveness, and reconciliation are used in teaching programs and sermons without ever being defined in behavioral ways that help the hearers implement a forgiveness strategy. In this one-day training program we will behaviorally define these terms and you will learn specific steps to lead a person from a state of resentment to a state of forgiveness.
Forgiveness doesn't have to take a lifetime. In most cases resolving resentment and achieving a sustainable state of forgiveness takes less than an hour. Here is what one participant said in one of the forgiveness retreats:
Forty years I´ve been carrying this resentment, had therapy with two psychiatrists about it, and now in just a few minutes it's gone. It´s like a miracle.
Program Content
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The Three Faces of Compassion: Tenderness, Fierceness, and Mischievousness
These are Used to Create Resourceful States to Ensure Forgiveness is Sustainable, especially when people will continue to violate our values.
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The Dynamics of Resentment and Creating the Internal Experience of Forgiveness
Seeking and Satisfying Objections to Forgiving
Creating Resourceful States to Deal with Ongoing Difficult Relationships
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Self-Forgiveness, Distinguishing Guilt from Shame, and strategies to resolve.
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Register For Forgiveness Webinar
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Introduction to Appreciative Inquiry
5 Twice Weekly (Tuesdays and Wednesdays) online sessions:
January 29, February 4, 5, 11, 12, 2025. 9:00 am -12 noon PST
Early Registration Price: $495.00
This is our Foundational Program that will introduce you to the
Appreciative Way which is Rob and Kim Voyle's synthesis of:
• Appreciative Inquiry
• The Work of Milton Erickson and his students, especially Steve Andreas.
• Eastern and Western Contemplative Spirituality
In this program you will learn many strategies to discover and grow what is life-giving to you personally and the organizations you lead.
You will also learn the Three faces of Compassion: tenderness, fierceness, and mischievousness, as you learn how to be a compassionate, transformational presence in the world.
This program is open to clergy and lay leaders engaged in ministry and congregation development.
For more information or to register please go to:
Register For Introduction to Appreciative Inquiry Webinar
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Appreciative Interim Ministry
5 Twice Weekly (Tuesdays and Wednesdays) online sessions:
February 18, 19, 25, 26, February 4, 2025. 9:00 am -12 noon PST
Early Registration Price: $495.00
$100 Discount when registering at the same time as the Introduction to Appreciative Inquiry.
This program will teach you how to use the
Appreciative Way when engaging in Transitional Ministry and Congregation Development.
In contrast to pathology reduction approaches to interim ministry and organization development, the Appreciative Approach is an incarnational way of joining a congregation by focusing on discovering and growing what is life-giving in a system.
This is Part 1 of our
Certificate in Transition Ministry.
For more information or to register please go to:
Register For Appreciative Interim Ministry Webinar
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Metaphors of Movement with Mark Andreas
Level I Live Online
Jan 25-26 & Feb 1-2, 2025
Mark and I learned the Metaphors of Movement approach from Andy Austin over many years as Andy developed his unique approach to understanding and working with the metaphors people use as they share the experiences of their lives. In the Appreciative world we pay particular attention to the language and social constructions people use to define their reality. Andy's MoM has infused all areas of my work, especially when people are seeking to discern the next steps in their lives and especially when they describe being stuck.
Beyond Andy's typical usage I have also used the Metaphor approach to understanding people's core purpose for being based on an exploration of the simple things people love to do. Thinks like quilting, cooking, creating spreadsheets, singing, walking, painting, etc. etc. are literally true or metaphorically true of people's core purpose in life.
I have great respect for the manner in which Mark uses and teachers the Metaphors of Movement work and how you can use it to help people transform their life experiences and can heartily recommend Mark's training if you would like a different form of continuing Education.
If you are at all curious about the approach or what training with Mark would be like, Mark is providing a free introductory session on Saturday 21 December:
Engaging Metaphors in Coaching and Therapy
FREE Metaphors of Movement 1-hour webinar with Mark Andreas
For more information or to register for the MoM training please go to:
Metaphors of Movement Training Registration
Use the Code ROB50 for a $50 discount
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With Advent blessings for your life and work.
Rob Voyle,
Founder of the Appreciative Way and
Director of the Clergy Leadership Institute
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