Jessie is an author for the Send Institute and a team member with 100 Movements. She is a nationally recognized leader in the fields of experiential education and educational neuroscience and holds a master’s from Harvard in Mind, Brain, and Education. She co-authored Activating 5Q: A User’s Guide with Alan Hirsch. She is a demonstrated disciple-maker. Jessie is a published academic and has edited several books on the application of neuroscience and cognitive psychology to the field of education. She and her husband currently live in Denver, Colorado.
Before you listen to this podcast, take a simple self-assessment.
10 – Always
7 – Usually
5 – Sometimes
3 – Rarely
1 – Never
___ I work hard to come up with creative ways to make sure that my teaching, preaching and training at church are interactive.
___ When I teach, preach and train, I seek to speak from my personal experience (my testimony) and not just content/knowledge.
___ I know a few tricks involving power positions that I only use for good purposes.
___ Your total. What does this tell you about where are and how you might need to grow as a trainer? Now, listen to the podcast with Jessie.
In the podcast, Jessie talks about the purpose of naming something. She said, “Naming something is prophetic because it is psychological. You don’t know something until you name it. The name gives it form and shape. You create a concrete paradigm to discuss later. Naming is spiritually profound.” How might this be applied as you help a church planter name a church or a ministry within a church?
Jessie talked about how important it is to make church interactive. She emphasized the importance of testimony as an integral part of the teaching. She mentioned that she has encouraged people to talk to their neighbors, even in crowds of 500. She said, “We are limited only by our models and imaginations” when it comes to making church interactive. What are three to five techniques you have used to make church services more interactive?
Jessie taught us from her Jedi-Ninja “bag of tricks.” She made us promise to use them only for good! For example, to make a subordinate feel brave and free in your presence, sit or squat in a position so that your head is below their head. To keep things simple and organic, use whiteboards (or post-its) rather than PowerPoint. To frustrate “bullies,” stand close to them, share your point, ask them to comment on what you said and watch them not have anything smart to say. What are some of your favorite Jedi-Ninja techniques?
The TED Talk about “power posture” that Jessie referred to was by Amy Cuddy. What kind of body language—what posture—do you think is best for trainers to exhibit in order to have the greatest impact on planters?
Take some time to reflect on the experience of listening to this interview with Jessie. Ask yourself, “What have I learned? What is one personal practice that I need to implement?” Write down your answers. Tell someone—a team member, a fellow trainer or your Regional Send Network Trainer—about the changes you want to make. Ask them to pray with you and encourage you. Now, develop a strategy to make those changes a reality.
You can follow Jessie on Twitter @yourbrainbyjess. You can find Jessie’s book Activating 5Q: A User’s Guide on Amazon.
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Published August 29, 2018