Tag Archive for: growing

Planted in Scotland

I am truly grateful for the opportunity over these last few months to have worked with some wonderful students.
Twelve months ago, whilst in the USA, I met with Dr. Tony Brown at BYU, in Provo, Utah.
From our conversation that day came the opportunity to help coordinate student internship placements here in Scotland and Ireland.
It was one of those moments where we both didn’t quite know at the time what would grow from it.
Amilya, Emily, and Hazel are the latest of that group. They’ve been in Dunfermline and Montrose for the last three or four months, and today is their final Sunday at church in Scotland before heading home in the next few days.
Amilya was one of our missionaries in Belgium/Netherlands, so that has been extra fun having her stay at our home too.
It’s been a real adventure for each of them and challenging at times too.
New country, new accents, new routines, new opportunities. 😊
They’ve worked hard, represented BYU amazingly, and brought warmth and energy everywhere they’ve gone.
A few weeks ago, Tony also made it across to Dunfermline to visit Hazel at her placement at the Andrew Carnegie Birthplace Museum. It was great fun showing him around the Glen that day and seeing things through fresh eyes again.

Lessons Learned

There’s a gospel lesson in all of this that keeps coming to mind.
The Saviour often talked about journeys, planting seeds, and using the talents we’re given. Sometimes the seeds are planted far from home, in unfamiliar soil, but with faith and effort they still grow.
I think that’s what’s happened here.
“But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.” Luke 8:15
The three of them came willing to serve, to learn, and to stretch themselves, and something good has grown for everyone involved.
We’re all better for having had them here, even if only for a season.
Safe travels home, Amilya, Emily, and Hazel.
Scotland will miss you, and we’re grateful for all the paths that crossed, and for the seeds that will keep growing long after you’ve gone.
Look out for many others students arriving in 2026 and if you’d like to host one or two, please drop me a note.
How often do we realise the value of a season only as it ends?

Fellowships

Throughout my life I have enjoyed a whole range of different fellowships.
I simply love the word.
It is associated with so many other “F” words.
The foundational meaning of the word is friendship.
In many ways our family is the first fellowship, where we experience life, a sense of belonging, where we learn to serve, lift, help and strengthen one another.
A family of fellowship provides the foundation for relationships built on love, trust, mutual understanding and respect.
It has been my experience that when families prioritise faith, forgiveness, and fortitude, they create strong fellowships within their homes.
Faith can also unite people in a spiritual or religious community.
For instance, after our church meetings on Sunday, our congregation enjoyed a warm fellowship at a munch and mingle together.

Fraternity

Fellowship also suggests a fraternity, where a deep bond of brotherhood or sisterhood can emerge.
Recently I became a Fellow of the Association for Coaching.
It is made up of a group of followers who share a common path.
I’ve discovered, that at the very core of the association, there is a fraternity of a close-knit group of individuals who support, challenge, and uplift one another – its great!
Fellowship and fraternity go hand in hand.
Last week I was in a deep conversation with another fellow of the association discussing how to build lasting connections and shape the lives of the rising generation of new coaches.
In a strong fellowship, where we have a focus on something, everyone has a role to play, whether in service, leadership, teaching, or simply offering encouragement.
And when that fellowship is strong, it builds a sense of community and people begin to flourish.
Flourishing is more than just a state of well-being, it’s about thriving, growing, firing up our faith, and reaching our full potential.
As each member flourishes the entire fellowship benefits.
My experience of fellowships is that they are also places that provide freedom to grow.
They are the foundation of friendships, families, and faith communities, that lift, strengthen, and inspire us to become our best selves.
What fellowships are shaping your life today?

Stretching, Growing and Learning

Over many years, I have had the opportunity and privilege to work in many leadership roles.
Lessons in leadership come in many ways.
I’ve certainly been stretched on many occasions as I struggled to get my head around the particular challenge of the day.
I’ve grown too in knowledge and understanding about how to handle many difficult situations.
And, I have learned so much about people, behaviours and what it means to be a good leader by putting the interests and needs of others first.
Oftentimes, I have benefited too from the guidance of other leaders who have inspired me.
Reflecting upon the last three years in Belgium and the Netherlands, working with 300+ young 18 – 26-year-old future potential leaders, I learned many lessons.

Stretching…

Time and time again, stretching opportunities came along for each of them to learn new skills.
Daily, growth opportunities arose for all of them to take on new challenges.
And regularly they all had opportunities to receive constructive feedback through 1-1 and team coaching/mentoring sessions.
Together we celebrated our successes.
When times were tough, when failures happened, we’d counsel with one another and figure out how to improve.
We learned a lot about slowing down.
Partnering with them, empowering them and trusting them to deliver their best work was key.
In any new growth situation, where we are learning and growing, our focus on what matters most is paramount.
Stretching happened every day.
And like many physical exercises, it is easy to grow tired!
No pain, no gain!
Small steps and little victories are key to forward progress.
Leadership guru, John Maxwell whilst speaking about the Law of the Rubber Band said; “Growth stops when you lose the tension between where you are and where you could be. There are many uses for a rubber band, but it’s of no use or value until it’s stretched.”
Just like a rubber band, you will never reach your full potential unless you are stretched!
Frequently, I was asked “How do I become a better leader?”
To start, take yourself out of your comfort zone and be prepared to be stretched.
Embrace the tension and put the resistance to work!
What kind of things are stretching you at the moment?

Maturity

I am a witness to the power of missionary service.
Serving in a foreign land, learning a new language and adjusting to a different culture makes a tremendous difference in the life of every young missionary.
Departing from home, they arrive in the mission with many childish characteristics and behaviours.
It’s time to grow up!
Time passes.
Change happens.
Far from home, they become adults.
“When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became an adult, I put away childish things ” (1 Cor. 13:11).
Unlike childlike, childish suggests irresponsibility, being self-centred and immature.
Each of us will not mature spiritually until we choose, as the Apostle Paul phrased it, to “put away childish things.”
Missionary service is intense, demanding and frequently filled with hardship.
Yet, filled with a new purpose, each young man or woman, learns about being credible, reliable, accountable, disciplined and builds relationships of trust with God and others.
They develop their faith in God, they acquire wisdom through experience, they understand how to serve and love others.
They work hard, recognising that obedience, consistency, and endurance are all keys to success.
As they also learn to lead others, they must first master themselves and be steadfast in their service.
They choose to become Christlike and follow in His ways.
Over and over again, I watch each of them mature into adulthood.
How have you chosen to “put away childish things”?

Disappointment

After coming in contact with someone with Covid this week, we’ve been in isolation for a few days.
Yesterday, despite our great determination, because of a number of growing cases of covid in the mission, we took a difficult decision to postpone (again) a mission conference, planned for the week ahead, with a visiting general authority of the church.
Our hopes were dashed once more…
Disappointment, discouragement and being a little down were not far from our thoughts yesterday, as we knew the impact the decision would have on our missionaries. Dealing with disappointment is not easy and it brings a kind of sadness with it too.

What did we learn?

Yet, setbacks are part of our experience as human beings.
I have learned in life too, that as we deal with disappointments, we need to understand that these temporary blips in our lives are just that — temporary!
The key, however, is to boldly face disappointments and to master and control the emotions that arise.
Maybe it is required of all of us to know that through disappointments in life we may experience that which was taught in Doctrine & Covenants 29:39 “if they never should have bitter, they could not know the sweet.”
All that said, in one of my favourite scriptures we read in Doctrine and Covenants 61:36, “And now, verily I say unto you, and what I say unto one I say unto all, be of good cheer, little children; for I am in your midst, and I have not forsaken you.”
So – in the midst of our disappointment yesterday, after dealing with and sharing our emotions with one another, we chose to change and cheer ourselves up. We put things into perspective!
It was our day off after all.
We put up the table tennis table and played for a little while. Then we had a game of Sequence, we ate some warming soup, had a chocolate or two, and finally we listened and danced to some cheerful Irish folk music – all of which lifted our spirits.
What do you do to overcome disappointments?