The Pastor's Soul
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Training the church to provide help for struggling pastors and their families. Addressing the growing trends of burnout, moral failure, and forced exit among pastors. We provide training and support for churches, pastors, and their families.
The Pastor's Soul
1M ago
The Weary Leader’s Guide to Burnout:
A Journey from Exhaustion to Wholeness
Outreach Magazine’s 2024 Leadership Resource of the Year
From the Article:
Evaluated by A.J. Swoboda, an associate professor of Bible and theology at Bushnell University; lead mentor for the Doctor of Ministry program on spiritual formation and soul care at Friends University; and the award-winning author of Subversive Sabbath.
In this book, readers are introduced to a treasure trove of biblical, theological and practical insights to help them navigate the leader through self-care and revitalizing practice in a ..read more
The Pastor's Soul
9M ago
Are you feeling stuck about an important decision? It’s common for pastors and other leaders to have trouble deciding their way forward from time to time. You may be stuck between good options or may not see any options at all. You may be trapped in overthinking or risk aversion and need help to shake loose. Perhaps you are just having trouble noticing God’s leading in your life or figuring out his will for you. A discernment community can help.
A discernment community is a small group of wise, godly people who are gathered to listen to both you and the Holy Spirit to help you find your way fo ..read more
The Pastor's Soul
11M ago
Are you looking for a quiet place for renewal, reflection, or sabbatical? There’s a relaxing and serene spot just outside Bannister, Michigan called The Richard Bush Renewal Center. I had the privilege of touring the facility a couple of weeks ago. I wish this place had been available years ago when I was recovering from burnout. It’s a wonderful place to rest.
Their mission is to provide a sacred space where God can accomplish growth and healing in the body of Christ. They believe that retreats remove us from our busyness and distraction to be more present to God and the work he desires to do ..read more
The Pastor's Soul
1y ago
My new book, The Weary Leader’s Guide to Burnout will release on March 28! You can now preorder the book and claim your pre-order bonuses at wearyleadersguide.com If you would like to begin reading now, join my book launch team.
Join the Launch Team Here
If the button above doesn’t work copy and paste this link into your browser: http://eepurl.com/il16dg
What will you get?
If you join the launch team, you will be part of a community of leaders who are learning together. You will get early access to the book in digital format, special journaling prompts, and reflection/discussion questions eve ..read more
The Pastor's Soul
1y ago
Planning a sabbatical requires forethought about what will make this time a refreshing and fulfilling experience. Without planning, your sabbatical will be wasted as you will end up bored, distracted, and, most importantly, it will not be an investment in future ministry. A sabbatical should be a time of rest and reflection in God’s presence for the purpose of recovering from past ministry wounds, recharging for future ministry, and reimagining sustainable rhythms of rest and work.
In a previous article, I used an alliterative framework to describe what a sabbatical should be— rest, renew, rec ..read more
The Pastor's Soul
1y ago
A sabbatical is more than rest from your work, it’s a time of refocusing and reinvestment in your life with Christ. Many pastors take a sabbatical without any goals and they don’t make any changes. When they return to work, they continue to experience the same problems. In just a few weeks, the benefits of their sabbatical are gone and the stress has returned. There’s a better way. In this article I want to share several goals you may want to adopt for your sabbatical. By focusing on these things during part of your time away you will return to your work healthier and better equipped to handle ..read more
The Pastor's Soul
3y ago
We invited guest blogger, Darrell Yoder, to The Pastor’s Soul to share a great resource on ministry resilience from Grand Rapids Theological Seminary.
A Conference on Resilience
As a conference planner, sometimes you choose the topic, and sometimes the topic chooses you. In 2019, we were coming off a series of events that engaged some of the most challenging and divisive topics facing the church: LGBT+ perspectives, justice, unity, racism, immigration, #metoo, and more. Our goal with the Talking Points program at Grand Rapids Theological Seminary is to provide space where pastors, ministry lea ..read more
The Pastor's Soul
3y ago
It’s no secret: Finishing this life with a God-honoring legacy isn’t automatic and certainly isn’t easy. So, in my twenties and thirties, I asked a number of older Christians to show me how it’s done. Thankfully, they agreed!
A few months before his death, best-selling author and international consultant Dr. Ted W. Engstrom invited me to spend a day together, just the two of us. His eyesight was gone, but his mind was still sharp. For hours, he told me about the things closest to his heart.
Among other things, Ted told me about a pact he, Billy Graham, and Bill Bright had made decades earlier ..read more
The Pastor's Soul
3y ago
Have you ever shared something personal with a friend only to have them say something hurtful in return? Maybe they offered advice when you needed affirmation. Maybe the didn’t really listen and identify with your story. Finding safe people who will accept you without judgement but still challenge you to grow can be a challenging task. Safe people are not easy to find and the only way to know if they are truly safe is to risk vulnerability.
In his book People Fuel, John Townsend lists 22 characteristics of people who will fill your relationship tank. When you are hurting and need to talk, look ..read more
The Pastor's Soul
3y ago
Every leader struggles with anxiety from time to time. What’s a leader to do if that anxiety becomes chronic? Steve Cuss, knows what it’s like to be an anxious leader and he knows how to manage anxiety well. He joins us on the Hope Renewed podcast to talk about his book Managing Leadership Anxiety: Yours and Theirs.
Steve, Tom Jameson, and I talk about how childhood vows, family of origin, and our inner critic can contribute to our anxiety. We also discuss some practical ways to manage this anxiety.
This episode isn’t just for pastors — any leader would benefit from Steve’s instruction. At on ..read more