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Spent a few hours this afternoon in some engaging 'futures thinking'. This always energises me and underlines how much we are both people of the future, and people of the past, as a dual level of interaction takes place.
For centuries society has operated on the assumption that the future can be taken for granted. But with the increasing pace of change, we need to be much more aware of what is happening within the society around us.
At some levels the term 'futures thinking' is a misnomer, as it is not merely a matter of reading the tea-leaves, but reflecting on existing trends and discerning where they might take us. Perhaps if we had done this more as a society - and even more so as a church - we wouldn't find ourselves in so many of the prevailing predicaments.
Jesus told his disciples that "the kingdom is breaking in upon them". It is this kingdom which is our future, and if we are to be part of it, we need to be much more reflective about its future shape, and how that compares with where we are heading now.
There aren't definitive answers, but we can clarify what is important to hold on to in the midst of it all.
I like the image employed by Leonard Sweet in "Soul Tsunami", where he reflects on the tidal wave of change engulfing the church. He invites his readers to consider ways that we might surf the waves of change rather than be swamped by them. In some senses, this is an apt analogy of futures thinking.
Posted by gary at February 26, 2005 05:05 PM
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