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from abqhomeblog.com[/caption]
A good friend recently sent me a beautiful picture of a full moon appearing over the New Mexico Mountains. Attached was a comment about taking time to “recharge.” Most of us are familiar with the commandment to “honor the Sabbath and keep it holy.” We must confess that we often honor it in the breach. And yet … in our contentious, chaotic, fast paced world we need more not less time for Sabbath rest.
All of this brings me back to my conviction of the importance of taking a couple of weeks vacation as a “summer Sabbath.” We need time away. Time physically away from the office and time away from electronic connections (email, cell phone, etc.) is important for both our emotional and spiritual health. There is benefit in gaining distance on our daily struggles, issues and concerns.
In my own casual reflections (and combined with some modest research), I don’t recall much use of the term “burnout” when I initially entered ministry. Today’s language of being “worn out” or “burned out” is common. I confess to being at best a semi-reformed workaholic but in my defense I have always been good about taking time for vacation. A couple of weeks away are life giving. They connect with the concept of a weekly Sabbath to “honor the Lord.”
It strikes me as significant that the British (Europeans as a whole) don’t use the term vacation. What we label a vacation, they call “being on holiday.” Following the linguistic connection, the word holiday is a derivation of the term “holy days”. These are days which are set aside to be deliberately holy. [An aside: I know that under God’s providential care all days are “holy.” However, when something is an everyday part of the background “noise” of life, it loses its impact for reforming the way we actually live as Christians.] We need time - significant time - where we pause, reflect on life, reconnect with family and loved ones, and recommit ourselves to a life lived for the Lord. In short, we need days which are set aside to be holy.
A few years ago I had the Chair of a Pastor-Parish Relations Committee call his DS and request a conference with his DS and me. He didn’t want to see his pastor moved. In fact his concern was just the opposite. He reported that his pastor was outstanding. His concern was that his pastor hadn’t taken a real vacation in 5 or 6 years. The District Superintendent concurred with PPR Chair’s shared concern. Both raised the specter of “burnout.” Both had talked with the pastor about his need to schedule some time off (vacation or “holidays”) to no avail. In review of the matter, I came to the conclusion that both were right. One of our most effective senior pastors was showing signs of burnout. To make a long story short, we held a meeting with the Board Chair of the Church, the PPR Chair, the DS, myself and the pastor. He offered a series of excuses for not taking a vacation or “summer Sabbath”. The pastors’ rationale did not stand up to scrutiny. Finally, with the full support of the group, I instructed the pastor to take a two week vacation and send me a post card of where he went (even if he spent the vacation reading books in the backyard!
A couple of months later I ran into the pastor in a meeting. He commented, “you’re a hero with my wife.” We both laughed and commented that she was really ready for him to take a vacation.
Now step back with me for a moment and reflect on our world and our individual context.
from abqhomeblog.com[/caption]
A good friend recently sent me a beautiful picture of a full moon appearing over the New Mexico Mountains. Attached was a comment about taking time to “recharge.” Most of us are familiar with the commandment to “honor the Sabbath and keep it holy.” We must confess that we often honor it in the breach. And yet … in our contentious, chaotic, fast paced world we need more not less time for Sabbath rest.
All of this brings me back to my conviction of the importance of taking a couple of weeks vacation as a “summer Sabbath.” We need time away. Time physically away from the office and time away from electronic connections (email, cell phone, etc.) is important for both our emotional and spiritual health. There is benefit in gaining distance on our daily struggles, issues and concerns.
In my own casual reflections (and combined with some modest research), I don’t recall much use of the term “burnout” when I initially entered ministry. Today’s language of being “worn out” or “burned out” is common. I confess to being at best a semi-reformed workaholic but in my defense I have always been good about taking time for vacation. A couple of weeks away are life giving. They connect with the concept of a weekly Sabbath to “honor the Lord.”
It strikes me as significant that the British (Europeans as a whole) don’t use the term vacation. What we label a vacation, they call “being on holiday.” Following the linguistic connection, the word holiday is a derivation of the term “holy days”. These are days which are set aside to be deliberately holy. [An aside: I know that under God’s providential care all days are “holy.” However, when something is an everyday part of the background “noise” of life, it loses its impact for reforming the way we actually live as Christians.] We need time - significant time - where we pause, reflect on life, reconnect with family and loved ones, and recommit ourselves to a life lived for the Lord. In short, we need days which are set aside to be holy.
A few years ago I had the Chair of a Pastor-Parish Relations Committee call his DS and request a conference with his DS and me. He didn’t want to see his pastor moved. In fact his concern was just the opposite. He reported that his pastor was outstanding. His concern was that his pastor hadn’t taken a real vacation in 5 or 6 years. The District Superintendent concurred with PPR Chair’s shared concern. Both raised the specter of “burnout.” Both had talked with the pastor about his need to schedule some time off (vacation or “holidays”) to no avail. In review of the matter, I came to the conclusion that both were right. One of our most effective senior pastors was showing signs of burnout. To make a long story short, we held a meeting with the Board Chair of the Church, the PPR Chair, the DS, myself and the pastor. He offered a series of excuses for not taking a vacation or “summer Sabbath”. The pastors’ rationale did not stand up to scrutiny. Finally, with the full support of the group, I instructed the pastor to take a two week vacation and send me a post card of where he went (even if he spent the vacation reading books in the backyard!
A couple of months later I ran into the pastor in a meeting. He commented, “you’re a hero with my wife.” We both laughed and commented that she was really ready for him to take a vacation.
Now step back with me for a moment and reflect on our world and our individual context.
- Violence and terror stalks the globe
- Presidential elections have led to a cultural mood of anger and discourtesy
- Economic uncertainty heightens uncertainty and angst
- Church conflict over a variety of hot-button issues (same gender weddings, response to cultural violence, war and peace, abortion, etc.)
- Personal struggles; and the list could go on