From the end of a longer (sometimes harrowing) article, some habits to help survival:
Your list may be different, but here is mine:
1. A regular day off. I take a day off
every week, and I'm really off. It's the last part that matters. It's so
easy to let ministry tasks, emails, phone calls, text messages, and
work demands weave themselves into every nook and cranny of every day.
It takes self-discipline and clear intent to actually have a day off.
For me, it's Friday, so that I can unwind before our weekend service
schedule begins.
Once a month, I also go on a spiritual retreat in the
mountains. I drive away from the office on a Thursday afternoon, stay
overnight at a little bed and breakfast, and come back the next
afternoon. The time is spent in a place that is renewing, a manner that
is renewing, and with a God who is renewing.
2. An annual study break. I take an
annual study break of four to six weeks, where I physically relocate.
This isn't vacation, but a time of intentional spiritual and emotional
renewal for the tasks at hand. Those who teach and lead have to pour out
instruction and guidance to others, and need to have annual times not
just to rest, but to replenish themselves. This is a time to separate
myself from the emotional wear and tear but still invest myself in
issues related to ministry.
When I'm on study break, I read widely, travel broadly,
visit other churches intentionally, map out another year of teaching
strategically, and tackle large leadership challenges diligently. I've
taken a summer study break of some kind for nearly 20 years, and it's
one of the reasons why I'm still thriving in ministry today. Like an
athlete that goes through a grueling season, you have to stop, give your
emotions time to heal, all in order to enter a new season.
3. Clear boundaries regarding giftedness.
As a pastor, you teach people about spiritual gtifts, and the
importance of making that gift their area of primary investment. I've
had to learn to apply this teaching to myself. There will always be
times where you have to serve as needed, but staying primarily within
your gift mix is preventative medicine against burn-out, because nothing
will drain you faster than operating outside of your giftedness.
I do not rank very high with the spiritual gift of
mercy, not to mention how that plays itself out in, say, extended
pastoral counseling. If I had to invest in that area with ongoing,
regular blocks of time, it would wipe me out. I've had to learn to be
very up front with folks about my areas of giftedness, and how those
gifts are supposed to operate in the mix with other people's gifts in
the body. Because what happens in a church, even one where spiritual
gifts are taught and celebrated, is that the pastor is still expected to
have them all—and to operate in them all. The danger is that you'll let
yourself try.
4. Emotionally replenishing experiences.
I've had to learn to intentionally pursue emotionally replenishing
experiences. When you hurt, if you don't find something God-honoring to
fill your tanks with, you'll find something that isn't God-honoring. Or
at the very least, you'll be vulnerable to something that isn't. I am
convinced this is why so many pastors struggle with pornography—it
offers a quick temporary emotional lift.
To prevent that, I've had to learn to do things that
flow deep emotional joy into my life. For some folks it's boating, or
golf, or gardening. For me, it's travel, pleasure reading, time alone
with family, and enjoying anything outdoors—particularly the mountains.
5. Real time with God. The most
strategic investment is time with God. But not just any time with God—I
must have time with God that touches me at a heart and soul level. Every
day, I seek to spend some time pouring out my heart, and in turn,
receiving his. Few people had the emotional ups and downs of David, and
if you read the Psalms carefully, you see that he poured out his
emotions to God in a disarmingly candid way. Learning to pray like David
has been healthy for me.
Ministry can be hazardous to your soul. Since we're always doing
spiritual things, it is easy to substitute doing ministry with true
communion with God. Plus, so many people assume we're spiritual, it is
tempting to believe that and let the estimation of others be the
standard by which we judge the state of our souls. From this, there can
be enormous levels of self-deception in regard to our spirituality.
Coupled with the emotional drain of our vocational lives, we are
terribly vulnerable.
James Emery White,
Leadership
