Distractions and Disruptions
"Some people strive for a “work-life balance.” I’m not sure it exists... Accepting that as a reality is a big help."
Rev. Debbie Sperry offers some wisdom earned the hard way in the latest post on the Clergy Wellness blog.
Radical Self-Care
In a post for the Clergy Wellness column, Rev. Katie Stickney shares how a recent bout of back pain revealed a new truth. While self-care offers all sorts of logistical challenges, the "biggest barriers" are often harder to see and tied into our beliefs about ourselves and our value.
We Say Goodbye A Lot
"Grief is a journey. I can’t just hammer away at it one day and expect it to be gone the next. It needs my attention." In a post for the Clergy Wellness Corner, Moscow First UMC Pastor Debbie Sperry shares how leaders must allow themselves to grieve as they help those they serve to do the same.
Wellness Springs from Self-acceptance
"In our hierarchical church system, there are plenty of ways we marginalize people called to ministry," writes Rev. Jenny Partch. On the Clergy Wellness blog, she reflects on the challenges of serving as a licensed local pastor in a system designed to give preference those who are ordained.
Burnout, Part Three
For the final installment of a 3-part series on burnout, Rev. Lisa Talbott offers four key strategies that have helped her to recover from a ministry "stall." While acknowledging that recovery can be a slow process, she argues that "burnout doe not get the last word."
Burnout, Part Two
Rev. Lisa Talbott continues an important three-part series on burnout for the PNW Clergy Wellness blog. In this part, Lisa shares how burnout manifested, naming the "stall indicators" she encountered.
Burnout, Part One
Growing up in Alaska, Rev. Lisa Talbott learned how to fly before she learned how to drive. One of the most important flying lessons she received provides insight into a professional challenge she recently encountered. Burnout.
It all started with a walk
In a post for the Clergy Wellness Corner, Rev. Debbie Sperry shares how incremental increases in her activity through walking led to a discovery. She noticed that when she gets out for a walk she is a better, kinder and more patient person as the practice allows her to "disentangle" her thoughts and process stress.
BOM announces web-based Clergy Wellness Workshops
The Formation committee of the PNW Board of Ordained Ministry is excited to announce a series of optional web-based clergy wellness workshops. The first workshop, 'Achieving a Healthy Body in an Unhealthy World' with Rev. Brad Beeman, will launch in January.
Have you divested from your clergyperson?
"Clergy are often caught carrying the cross of United Methodist decline in ways that are both unfair and debilitating. This is not a recipe for success..."
Patrick Scriven offers some reflections which may be helpful to local church leaders looking to support their pastoral leaders as they weather turbulent days together.
