Soul Care for Ministry Leaders

In his book, Embracing Soul Care, Steve Smith quotes Thomas Moore: "When the soul is neglected, it doesn't just go away; it appears symptomatically in obsessions, addictions, violence and loss of meaning."

I've been down that road. Even though I was involved in full-time church ministry, Jesus was not the center of my heart. I was not inviting Jesus into my dark places of brokenness, fear, guilt and shame. I was wounded and didn't know the first thing about the care of my soul.

Mary Oliver once wrote, "The heart has many dungeons.  Bring the light. Bring the light."

The church offers us fulfillment in doing really important and good work for God. We think we can push our lives to the limits and make God proud. But we’re left languishing in the dark

We’ve completely missed Jesus’ invitation to come and rest, to give our souls a chance to recover from the endless demands and expectations of others, and our souls are paying the price.

If we were honest, we would admit it actually feels good to be so revered and respected, so needed and appreciated. It’s like a drug. And if it’s ever taken away or threatened, look out.

So, how do we avoid all the traps and pitfalls of leading with a dis-integrated and dis-eased soul? How do we change the way we’ve been doing things and begin to act as if we know we are loved for who we are rather than what we do for God?

How do we move back into the light?

Of all the pressures of ministry leadership, the one that seems to most oppressively consume our thoughts and feelings is the pressure of leading when we don’t know what to do. The pressure comes in all flavors and sizes: conflict resolution, planning, vision casting, allocating resources, managing volunteers, and much more.

Soul Care and Discernment

Let’s face it. Ministry can be messy. We know this because we know people are messy.

Stories are messy. Relationships are messy. Discernment can feel messy, too.

Should we stay or should we go? Do we address the conflict in our volunteer team or hope it will go away all on its own? Do we make that hard leadership decision knowing it will alienate an entire swath of good-hearted people? How do we know the things we should address and the things we should let go? How do we check our spirit to make sure we aren't leading out of fear, power, or control?

If we keep doing the same things year after year and expect different results, we are operating in insanity. So what needs to change?

Consider your weekly rhythm. What does it look like? Are you living Sunday to Sunday? When are you building time into your schedule for silence and solitude?

"Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed." (Mark 1:35)

Jesus knew the importance of getting up early in the morning and withdrawing from the presence of others in order to be present with his Heavenly Father. More often than not, we allow the praise of others and the allure of the crowds to drown out the voice of the Holy Spirit. Before too long, the priorities of God are no longer our priorities.

We have to decide, before it's too late, to adopt a rhythm of life that resembles the way of Jesus, not the way of the world. His was a rhythm of engagement and disengagement. Jesus engaged with the crowds and ministered out of the center of God's will, then he disengaged in order to cultivate a listening and obedient heart.

When discerning God’s voice and considering how to be present to others in ministry, always remember you are dealing with people, not objects. When you take time to pray and listen, you'll hear how to be present to others with a greater interior freedom. The goal is to become a person of love who is more responsive than reactive.

Don't let another week go by without developing a plan for silence and solitude. You need a healthy rhythm of disengagement from the demands of the crowds for the sake of your soul. As a result of time well spent with Jesus, you will be able to more freely discern and respond from a different vantage point. You’ll be able to see and hear God more clearly. You’ll be able to notice and name your own desires, too. Everything matters when it comes to leading well, even your own soul’s health.

“The heart has many dungeons. Bring the light. Bring the light.”