Today I am doing one of those things that all good ministers should do, but which so readily get squeezed out, that is, I am reading; tending to my own nurture, allowing myself in some sense to be mentored by a book about mentoring.

The book, The Potter's Rib, arrived yesterday and I began to read it last night (but only until 9p.m. when Silent Witness began cos ministers need R&R too).  So far I can't say it has told me anything I hadn't heard before, but it has helped me to pause and reflect on my own experiences of being mentored and of mentoring and supervising others.

I won't bore you with the details, but I have been well served through the years by the men and women who were charged with acting as supervisors, tutors, advisers and mentors, as well as a range of informal networks for mutual support, sharing and honing.  I have also found great reward in sharing with others as they have been supervised or mentored.

Good, official mentoring seems to me to be vital to the formation of ministers - and other roles for that matter - and good systems, training and accountability are vital in that endeavour.  But there is also lots of scope for informal mentoring and for being open to being mentored in surprising ways.  I am grateful to various folk who through the years both encouraged and chastised me (even if I resented the latter at the time!) who affirmed my gifts and identifed my gaps.  And I am grateful to this book, which so far has simply said to me 'yes, I know you know this, but maybe you need to think about it once again?'

Formation, as the book rightly observes, is never finished, it goes on always.  It is not merely the accumulation of knowledge or even experience but the transformation that arises: reflection leads to insights, and insights (hopefully) to wisdom.  So, I will read, learn and inwardly digest - in the hope of growing along the way.