Don’t Waste a Good Crisis
Has a crisis or a breakdown in your life created an opportunity for growth? Margaret Benefiel of the Shalem Institute reflects on how the crisis of the Covid-19 pandemic offered her organization an opportunity for growth and development. Join us in reflecting on the opportunities of crisis in this month’s We Conspire series.
“Don’t waste a good crisis,” admonished Winston Churchill during World War II. It was COVID-19 that presented such a moment for us at the Shalem Institute, where I serve as executive director. In the crisis of the pandemic, we took the opportunity to draw on our contemplative practices, rooted in ancient traditions, to sustain our faith and seek guidance during a time of difficult transitions.
A crisis suspends the status quo and makes possible what wasn’t possible before. It reveals how established ways of operating may no longer be relevant in new circumstances. We wondered what we might be able to do in the crisis of COVID-19 that we hadn’t been able to do before. We wondered which of our old ways needed to be shed in the new circumstances.
We knew the Chinese character for “crisis” meant both “danger” and “opportunity.” What was the opportunity hiding in this crisis for us? What was the danger? We found we needed to dive deep into our contemplative practices and listen, going beneath preoccupation with our own fears and discomfort to the bedrock of God’s abiding presence and guidance. We waited and listened and watched.
As we listened and practiced discernment, both individually and communally, we found our way forward, step by halting step. We made difficult transitions in our programs. We felt guided to new ground. Most importantly, our faith was deepened through deep listening and prayer together.
“We found we needed to dive deep into our contemplative practices and listen, going beneath preoccupation with our own fears and discomfort to the bedrock of God’s abiding presence and guidance.” – Margaret Benefiel
In the end, the crisis of COVID-19 allowed us to break through barriers that had confined us: we expanded the Group Spiritual Direction program, we did significant leadership development and expanded and diversified our team of program leaders, manifesting the next incarnation of a program for personal spiritual growth. We made the Shalem Society gathering of program graduates affordable and accessible, and strengthened working relationships within our administrative staff, not limited by geography.
A second crisis, arising from police killings of Black and Brown people and subsequent protests, sparked a time of racial reckoning for our country, putting the United States’ original sin of racism front and center. Again, we at Shalem were called to ask, “What is ours to do?” What was the invitation for us in this crisis, both internally and externally? For years, ours has been a predominantly White organization working toward creating more diversity on its board and staff, with limited success.
“The admonition to ‘not waste a good crisis’ has served us well. Crises provide important opportunities to make difficult transitions, and to do so in a way that deepens faith and relationships.” – Margaret Benefiel
The time was right to work more broadly toward diversity, equity, and inclusion. We took a number of steps to begin to address this issue. We still have much work to do, and we have begun to look at the next steps we can take toward diversity, equity, and inclusion in our organization. The crisis of police violence toward BIPOC and the related protests in the United States have provided Shalem with the opportunity to step up and do our work. We have begun a long journey, and I pray that we will have the courage and perseverance to continue.
The admonition to “not waste a good crisis” has served us well. Crises provide important opportunities to make difficult transitions, and to do so in a way that deepens faith and relationships.
This essay is a further development of an excerpt from Crisis Leadership by Margaret Benefiel, adapted and used with permission of the publisher (Morehouse Publishing, 2021).
Reflect with Us
Have you experienced turning crisis into a greater growth? Share your reflection with us.
Margaret Benefiel, Ph.D., is the Executive Director of the Shalem Institute, has served as Chair of the Academy of Management’s Management, Spirituality, and Religion Group, as Co-chair of the Christian Spirituality Program Unit of the American Academy of Religion, and in various leadership roles in Spiritual Directors International.
We Conspire is a series from the Center for Action and Contemplation featuring wisdom and stories from the growing Christian contemplative movement. Sign up for the monthly email series and receive a free invitation to practice each month.