During the time she served at Highland Heights we had many conversations. The last four years she served was during a very difficult time for me so we became closer.
Mrs. Emily as we called her, demonstrates competent communication as a pastor, friend, mother, and teacher. She was always willing to sit down and listen, but if she knew she was not available to listen she scheduled another time. She always made time to ensure she was fully understanding the purpose of the conversation if it was for help or just to listen and share in concern or celebration. She was honest with her communication through conversation. I would hope that I do model some of my communication after Mrs. Emily. She listened first, then asked questions, waited for a response, and sometimes gave an opinion. She often encouraged me to seek out my answers rather than giving them to me. She was a school principal before entering the ministry, and I can imagine she was encouraging to the children in a classroom as she was to me. She was sympathetic, empathetic, honest, trustworthy, and respectful when communicating with others. She never seemed demanding even when presenting the scriptures or sermons.
I had to call on her many times during her last four years as I mentioned earlier, and never once did I feel like I was neglected or misunderstood. I felt like we could talk in conversation with a purpose or in general. Her personality was to care and nurture. Mrs. Emily is a pastor so she always tries to live by a code of ethics. I'm sure she was lead by her own morals and values, and she encourages strong Christian morals and values in others.
Just a few of the conversations we had of me graduating from college and finding a teaching job. I took care of my grandmother, who also attended this church, for three years before her passing. In the Fall of that year I got married, shortly after that my dad got married, and the following weekend my mother passed away. I then began working on the Master's degree I am pursuing now, and through all of this she was encouraging and very hopeful for my future.
She has a daughter my age so there were many stories and laughs shared. The conversations were always open with active listening all the way around.
The above pictures are from my rehearsal and wedding October 10, 2009, in which, Mrs. Emily Matheny officiated.
Hey Ginny,
ReplyDeleteI love the wedding picture. Your story is so touching and I am glad that you were able to talk with someone in need. Its awesome that she lent herself to you when you asked for guidence. Seeking out someone else's advice can be difficult, but you communicated to her of your need. Mrs. Emily seems to be a competent communicator and truly values the moral ethics of both her Minstry and teaching. A lot of Pastors move around because ours did a year and a half. Now, we have an awesome, funny, and loving Pastor. He is fairly still new but knows everyones first and last names. I thought how cool it was! Especially, when he told me that he studied our church directory and memorized each and every member. He made quite sure that all kinds of communication were available early on. Thanks for your inspirational story!God is Good!
Christine
Ginny,
ReplyDeleteI love your choice for an effective communicator! I like the fact that you also included the fact that she is a good listener; too often people are excellent at speaking but terrible at listening which does not make for good communication. Thank you for sharing your story of how effective communication can make such a difference in our lives!
Jamie
Ginny,
ReplyDeleteYour pastor made a huge impact on you. It is extremely important to have time to listen otherwise we are distracted and have a lot of interference or noise which takes away from our decoding.