Today’s catch phrase is:
Enjoy hobbies and interests outside of ministry.
No, I did not just speak false doctrine. 🙂 But I did speak something that I didn’t used to think was even possible, or allowable for a woman in ministry.
Now I not only believe that it is acceptable- I believe that it is vital.
When we entered ministry, we were fresh out of Bible college with lots of ideals, as are most young folks who step into ministry for the first time without a mentor. And so for the first 4 years, ministry was my life. I was married to a pastor, and I birthed two sweet PKs. My life consisted of taking care of my family and assisting my husband with {many} ministry tasks.
But in the midst of all of this good stuff, I was making a serious mistake. I was doing virtually nothing for myself.
How did I come to realize this? Well, we left our first ministry under a great amount of personal stress. I had survived two life threatening pregnancies and my health was broken. Yet we felt pressured {perhaps we pressured ourselves} to push on and minister at full capacity. The reality was this: we were burned out and empty. We were still finding our way in a new marriage, new ministry, and new parenting journey. We just needed support. Not to mention that we lived in a very remote part of Canada, on an island. Opportunities were very limited compared to where we had where we moved from in the States.
We desperately needed some healthy distractions to balance out our life a little more. But we didn’t realize this until we actually left our ministry. Hidden away in an old but lovely house in the woods of Nova Scotia, we grieved. It felt like our life had completely fallen apart.
We wanted to pick up the pieces, but we didn’t know where to put them.
The future seemed like a big black hole of nothingness. Life was over because our ministry was over.
A few months later when God moved us to our current location, He also opened our eyes to some opportunities that we never had access to on the island where we had lived before. I was reading a book for pastors’ wives at the time, and in it the author expounded on the necessity of having sports involvement and hobbies/interests outside of church. Little by little, it dawned on me. And our family made some radical life changes.
Join me tomorrow when I will share the changes that opened up a new life for our family. And meanwhile…
Let’s Chat: What hobbies and interests do you enjoy outside of church? Has it been a learning process for you to be able to add those things into your life, or have you always felt the freedom to do so? How has it helped you through the rough spots in ministry?
When we moved to rural Utah to take over a small church plant the Lord opened up the opportunity for me to hike the Grand Canyon and then that led to a hobby of running. I did not love it at first and although I could barely go 2 blocks when I began I kept going, signing up for races and meeting a friend 2-3x a week to run together, Now 3 years later I ran my first marathon this year and plan to do one a year Lord willing, along with a few other shorter races throughout the year. Running and Walking a few times a week with Christian friends is one of the most refreshing things I do and it keeps me healthy as well. So its a WIN-WIN hobby!
Lois, sounds like you DID find a winner of a hobby! I have some friends who are doing marathons…maybe someday I will join them. For now, skating is my thing. 🙂
Real quick just wanted to tell you Leah how much I appreciate this post! Yes! Totally agree. Outside church hobbies are healthy! 18months ago I took up running though I’d never in my life been one. It was free, and it didn’t take long. My husband this year joined me and we are going away for a short overnight trip to run in a half marathon in less than 3 weeks. We have sooo enjoyed the time together doing something outdoors, and planning and dreaming together. We look forward to more hobbies we want to add as time goes on.
Yesterday I was on “my trail” running all alone… And I thought to myself as I was encompassed by Gods beautiful creation… “No matter what stresses in life and ministry Are going on, I have the trail”.. It’s a time of prayer, meditation, stress release, and just plain realizing how big my creator is, and how small I am. Reminds me every time it see a leaf fall or a star shine bright, that God is able. “He made the stars also” the Bible says. Like it was just a little side note. He is powerful. I love being out there enjoying Gods creation regularly.
Thanks Leah!!!