Avoiding Burnout

A couple of months ago another minister asked me how you avoid burnout in ministry. My response was that at least the following four things must be in place (I believe these to be true and necessary for all of us whatever our vocation in life and in fact are necessary if we are to mature as Disciples of Christ):

1.      Do the internal work:

If we are to mature as Disciples of Christ then at some point we must allow God to look deep within us and to surface our hidden drivers and wounds. All of us have “drivers (motivators)” within us – some are healthy and some very unhealthy. Even the healthy drivers, if not understood, can lead us to overdo something and burnout. Understanding what is important to us, what we avoid, why we respond positively or not so positively to people and situations is critical to emotional and spiritual health. The book “Emotionally Healthy Church” by Peter Scazzero has some great tools for helping us do this (you can order one from the bookshop). Often we also need a trusted counsellor or friend who is good at asking questions that take us deeper than we would normally go.

There really is no way of avoiding this journey if we want to keep maturing in Christ and if we want to protect against burnout.

2.      Ensure you have times of re-creation:

Fun, friendship and faith are actually the keys to this. I am absolutely convinced that having fun is one of God’s keys for emotional wellbeing – it is as important as sleep. What do you do each week that you really enjoy – that is fun for you?

Healthy friendships where you don’t have to wear a mask but are free to genuinely be yourself are also important in being renewed emotionally.

So too is faith – and not just faith as an abstract concept – but faith as a growing relationship with God that is renewed by taking the time to be still, alone, reflect on scripture and wait on God – listening to His whisper of love to us.

3.      Clarifying the unique way God has designed you to serve:

For me this has meant looking closely at what my role as Senior Minister involves and what my unique gifts/strengths are. I have then identified where these intersect and seek to focus the majority of my time on these. I call them my four ‘big rocks’ – the things I am uniquely designed to do in my role here at Logan and they get first priority in my allocation of time.

What are you passionate about? What do you do well? What is unique about you? How are these finding expression in your daily vocation (paid or unpaid work)?

If you don’t answer these questions you will end up doing everything and nothing (feeling like you are not really contributing anything worthwhile) and/or being constantly driven by the expectations of others

4.      Ensure you have people who encourage you to do the above three things:

This is where “intentional faith filled friendships” (meeting with 2 other people of the same gender for accountability, encouragement and prayer) and/or “faith life groups” come into play.

I find it helpful to have people who encourage me to take time for fun and re-creation when they see I need it. It has been important to have people who ask the hard questions regarding what I am doing about my internal work. I meet in an intentional faith filled friendship where each week we talk about what we have learnt in our times with God and answer a great question: “what don’t you want to talk about?” It has also been helpful to have others affirm my choices in prioritising my ministry (around the “4 big rocks”) as there are times it means I will say no to people or not meet certain expectations.

I hope these insights are helpful.

Yours in Christ

Graham Keech