Episode 16 with Chris Cartwright

Elim MPower

In Episode 16 we are chatting with Elim’s national leader Chris Cartwright. Chris introduces himself, his wife Annie and his three grown-up children and briefly outlines his journey in faith and ministry, up to his current role as the General Superintendent of the Elim Pentecostal movement worldwide.

We ask the million-dollar question: how can really busy blokes manage all the different priorities they are confronted by? We all get pushed into an extraordinary level of ‘busyness’, but we mustn’t beat ourselves up about that!

Chris shares that he has been slowly working his way through the Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer, along with a couple of really helpful principles for really busy blokes:

First is to try and avoid carrying things that can’t be dealt with today, but ask instead for wisdom, courage and energy at the time it is necessary to deal with those things.

Second is to become familiar with those things that energise us – whether it be worship, exercise, or being around nature (for example).

Lockdown has allowed some adjustments to the usual crazy pace, and an opportunity to re-evaluate some of our rhythms – and we mustn’t lose sight of what God has been saying to us in this time.

We explore a concept from Stuart Keir of Audacious Church about the difference between a load (Isaac carrying sticks up the hill, and able to put it down) and a burden (Abraham carrying an instruction up the hill, and unable to put it down), and how Chris deals with the continual weight of leadership burden.

He explains that he is making this more of a journey and a connection with God versus a set formula, by opening up to God honestly about concerns and issues, and asking for help and patience. Many things that seem pressing can be allowed some time before they get tackled – and we can ask for God’s help with these.

We sometimes give unwarranted attention to things that drain us – so by making our prayers really practical, it allows God to step in. Chris also observes that the load can and does build up over time, too – and it can creep up on us in a subtle way.

Chris talks about his love of Paul’s letters to Timothy, and the vulnerable honesty with which Paul shares his heart, mind and disappointments, especially in 2 Timothy 4.

Christ also shares his love of reading, and at present is working his way through Scattered Servants by Alan Scott, We Need To Talk About Race by Ben Lindsay and Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. Gladwell attributes success not only to innate ability and hard work but also ‘outrageous opportunity’.

Before closing in prayer for blokes listening, we play ‘Spin the Wheel’ and it turns up ‘car’ and also ‘journey’. Chris reveals that he wouldn’t mind owning an Aston Martin (wouldn’t we all!) and he also shares a staggering testimony from a 2009 trip to the west coast of America and Hawaii.