Canoeing the Mountains – Christian Leadership in Uncharted Territory

Product Information

The river now carries you downstream where you can laze about, stop for picnics, go for a swim or rush through the rapids. Now and then you need to decide which side of the river to take, but if there is any potentially dangerous sections (i.e. a tree down on the side of the river that you need to avoid) the hire company will have told you which way to go. A superb book on the need for adaptive leadership in the twenty-first-century church. Bolsinger challenges leaders in the Christian community to recognize the unsettling reality of being 'off the map.' Illustrated with vivid metaphors and real-world examples, resulting in a seminal book on how to navigate this new world. A must-read for everyone interested in church leadership." We’ve been providing free travel content on Anywhere We Roam since 2017. If you appreciate what we do, here are some ways you can support us.

Kayak: The Animated Manual of Intermediate and Advanced Whitewater Technique is an outdoor classic for all of those who want to live on the edge, but safely. Complete with all the details to enhance your whitewater experience, Kayak is a great resource for learning new skills for intermediate and advanced kayakers and learning rescue basics. Plus, all of this is explained in easy-to-read and understand illustrations that are as funny as they are resourceful. This book will teach you basic river courtesy rules, intermediate and advanced technique, and most importantly, how to hold on to your life and limbs and keep your sanity as well. The following are questions from the book and from my own mind that are guiding a book study I'm leading on the final section. They may be helpful to you. But if we are convinced that a change is necessary, how do we bring it without alienating the whole church? How do we face the losses and fears in our congregations, the opposition and resistance in our leaders, and the anxieties and insecurities in ourselves to truly lead the church through this adventure-or-die moment? How do we develop leaders for mission in this rapidly changing, uncharted-territory world?” What are the competing values or gaps between my aspirations and actual behaviors that I need to face?How might the death of Christendom in the West mean there are more and more brothers and sisters on the margins? How might the death lead to new life? Canoeing the upper Wye is best if you want a slow quiet meander. The river is wide and gently drifts downhill. There are a couple of mini rapids that require concentration, but nothing too challenging.

Drawing from his extensive experience as a pastor and consultant, Tod Bolsinger brings decades of expertise in guiding churches and organizations through uncharted territory. He offers a combination of illuminating insights and practical tools to help you reimagine what effective leadership looks like in our rapidly changing world. Bolsinger says that transformational leadership does not begin with transformation. It begins with competence. Before a team will follow a leader into uncharted territory, there needs to be a sense that the leader has already done a good job stewarding the resources on the map. If large crowds put you off then head upstream to Hay on Wye or book outside the July and August summer holidays. Our Headquarters is at Upavon in Wiltshire and we have many training centres around the UK (England, Scotland, Wales and N Ireland), Germany and Cyprus. Our servicemen and women also train independently of our training centres across the globe from the Arctic to the Himalayas. Finally, if you are heading out for a full day or multi-day plan your food stops. There are many pubs along the way that provide food and drink, but most paddlers choose to bring a picnic and have a lazy meal on the riverbanks.

For the upper and middle sections of the river you don’t need any experience or any particular level of fitness. With minimal gear, an inflatable kayak and a can-do attitude like no other, Sutherland coolly embarked on epic thousand kilometer journeys along the remote north shore of Molokai and the coast of Alaska. Sutherland’s writing inspires, shatters perceived barriers and may make you question our dependence on GPS, Go-Pros and Gore-Tex gear. Like Lewis and Clark, we must stay on course with the same goal, but be ready to change how we’re going to get there. Thanks to JK Jones for this recommendation. Took me a while to get to it. Wish I had read it earlier. Briefly interacting with the Lewis and Clark story, Bolsinger writes about leadership that actually transforms the organization (read: church, school, non-profit, etc). His principles are powerfully laid out. His insights are helpful and cause a number of light-bulb moments. So, while you are still on the map – taking care of Sunday school, youth group, Bible studies, etc. – build the credibility, connections, and culture that you want to carry with you off the map.