Thrive_Autumn 2019 digital issue

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Autumn 2019 GETTING TO THE HEART OF THE MATTER INTERVIEW WITH PHIL WEBB, FELLOWSHIP INTERNATIONAL MISSIONARY WORKING TO MENTOR PASTORS IN COLOMBIA AND CANADA IN THE AREA OF LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT. OUT THERE: FELLOWSHIP INTERNATIONAL What does your ministry focus on? What are the main issues you deal with when mentoring? For the past 20 years, my ministry has focused on leadership development with pastors—not developing their professional abilities, but focusing on building their character and examining their relationship with God. A good number of pastors don’t have as intimate a relationship with God as they need to: they have plenty of head-knowledge, but it hasn’t fully taken residence in their heart. I seek to address this, helping them reach new depths in their intimacy with the Lord. Many pastors also find it hard to receive help and inpouring from others, even from God. This always leads to burnout! Receiving takes a level of vulnerability that many in society view as a weakness, yet without it our spiritual well dries up. A big contributor to this is insecurity—some leaders are insecure, and it prevents them from establishing close relationships. Without close relationships to expose our motivations, it’s easy to become distracted from acknowledging shame and fear. If no one knows us intimately enough to see the motivations behind our behaviours, this can go unchecked, which is why developing close, honest relationships is so essential. Can you walk us through the process of mentorship that happens? What sets it apart from other mentorship programs? In the early stages of my ministry, relationships were developed by proximity; those who I was already developing for ministry in Colombia were those I mentored. Since returning to Canada, I’ve been meeting with pastors who approach me for help. Meetings can be through various modes (in person, phone, skype) and can last varying lengths of time, depending on the issues that need to be addressed. There are some men that I meet with once a week for only a few months, some meet with me once a month for four years, while there are some I meet with once every six months for many years. Some men know what issues they want to work on before we start, and some discover new, unexpected issues as we journey together. Many EVERYTHING DRIVES BACK TO THE QUESTIONS, “WHERE DOES AM I RESTING IN MY
thrive-magazine.ca thrive / 9 IF WE CAN FIRST RESTORE THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH THEMSELVES, ALLOWING THEM TO IDENTIFY AS BELOVED SONS OF GOD, FROM THERE OTHER RELATIONSHIPS ARE RESTORED AND BEHAVIOURS BEGIN TO CHANGE. times people will try to change the symptoms (behaviours) without tracing it back to the root. We need to deal with the heart of the matter before we can break people free from the behaviours that accompany it. Everything drives back to the questions, “Where does my identity lie? Am I resting in my identity given by God?” I try to change relationships, not behaviour—relationships with others, with self, and with God. Romans 13:8-10 tells us that every single sin is a lack of love and hurts a relationship; therefore, every change God asks of us will be a relational change. If we can first restore their relationship with themselves, allowing them to identify as beloved sons of God, from there other relationships are restored and behaviours begin to change. I’m so passionate about this topic that I wrote a book (in Spanish) about what relational theology looks like, called Connected. What are the most common barriers you face when mentoring in this way? Many times the men that I mentor are resistant to getting as emotionally close to me as necessary. Without honesty and vulnerability, the relationship can’t achieve what it needs to in order to see meaningful character refinement. It’s also very hard for people to look at their own pain and unresolved issues. They may have been hurt in the past and feel reluctant to let someone new get close to them. Another drawback is the time-consuming nature of working in one-on-one meetings: it means that I have to pull back on programming to spend time with each individual. It also requires a lot of spiritual and emotional investment, as we tackle many difficult issues, and there is an element of moving into unknown territory—there are no guaranteed outcomes! How have you seen God at work? Seeing God transform people when they understand their true identity as children of the Most High is easily the most rewarding transformation. In John 17:23, Jesus asks God that “the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.” When we can grasp that fact, we’re on our way to embracing our God-given identity. I have also seen God deal with not only guilt, but shame, which is more identity-based than guilt, as it distorts a person’s perception of themselves. When shame is lifted, people experience freedom to move into areas of ministry that they were afraid of previously. I have seen many pastors finally become vulnerable, and many who overcome sexual addictions by embracing their identity as children of God. MY IDENTITY LIE? IDENTITY GIVEN BY GOD?”
Page 1 and 2: Autumn 2019 PREVENTING THE WELL FRO
Page 3 and 4: thrive-magazine.ca thrive / 3 Churc
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Page 13 and 14: thrive-magazine.ca thrive / 13 JOUR
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