WHAT DO HEALTHY CLERGY LOOK LIKE?
You may have read some of the recent articles concerning the declining health of clergy. While the Duke Health Initiative may be the most extensive study, many other groups have done studies that have similar results. How would you describe the difference between a healthy clergy and an unhealthy clergy? What is the image you have of each?
Both healthy and unhealthy clergy experience stress and challenges. The difference is how they respond to life’s circumstances.
RATE YOUR OWN LEVEL OF HEALTH
Let me suggest some contrasts between how healthy clergy (HC) and unhealthy clergy (UC) respond to both life and faith.
On a continuum with Healthy Clergy on one end and Unhealthy clergy on the other, rate yourself from 1 (UC) to 100 (HC). None of us is completely healthy. All of us do better in some areas than others. This is a self-evaluation rather than a judgment.
When you have graphed your responses, identify areas where you would like to raise your scores. Begin with some of the easy areas where you might improve as a means of building your own confidence. Then move to some more difficult areas. You might consider this an opportunity for some New Year’s resolutions.
In the tougher areas, you will improve our chances for making progress if you explain your rating with someone else you trust. By verbalizing your ratings, you will gain a greater understanding of the steps you need to take. By asking them to hold you accountable, you will strengthen your resolve. If both of you enter into this mutual accountability, it can be both fun and satisfying as you progress.
TWENTY AREAS OF CONTRAST
1. High Education—Low Salary
HC understand that they will not get rich in the ministry.
UC resent the higher income of comparably educated people in other professions.
2. The Food We Eat
HC are tempted by fast foods, sweet drinks, and other unhealthy diets.
UC indulge in such foods in response to stress and emotional tiredness.
3. Time for Physical Exercise
HC see regular physical exercise as part of the stewardship of their bodies.
UC do not have time to exercise, given their demanding schedule.
4. Responding to Verbal Abuse
HC look behind abusive behavior by others and see a wounded person.
UC see such abusive behavior as a challenge to their personal dignity.
5. Questions and Doubts
HC experience times of deep questioning and doubt.
UC are consumed by their questions and dominated by their doubts.
6. Responding to Criticism
HC listen for elements of truth in criticism but do not take it personally.
UC see all criticism as an attack on their personhood.
7. The Value of Play
HC have several different ways to have fun when there is time.
UC feel guilty when they are having fun.
8. Families Often Pay a Price
HC struggle with the sacrifices that ministry makes on their families.
UC see family needs as a burden that interferes with their ministry.
9. Having Fun with the Family
HC seek ways to have fun with their families in both small and big experiences.
UC do not know how to play with the family even when there is time.
10. God Has Called Me to Ministry
HC recognize God’s call includes challenges and even suffering.
UC keep seeking the perfect call where everything feels right.
11. Spirit of the Living God, Breathe on Me
HC sense the Spirits movement in the good and the bad.
UC feel despair is a sign of God’s abandonment.
12. Personal Spiritual Practices
HC make time for personal spiritual practices a priority.
UC neglect spiritual disciplines because there is not enough time.
13. To Whom Does Scripture Speak
HC approaches Scripture with the question:”What is God saying to me?”
UC approach Scripture with the question: “How can I use this in a sermon?”
14. The focus of Our Prayers
HC pray for other people and for greater understanding in their ministry.
UC pray about being misunderstood and underappreciated.
15. Thinking About the Future
HC take time to muse and play with possibilities for the future.
UC are too busy to play or imagine the future.
16. Faith and Success
HC recognize that faithful ministry does not always appear successful.
UC are shaped by the world’s definition of success.
17. The Success of Other Clergy
HC celebrate God’s work in other clergies’ ministries.
UC are envious & critical of other clergies’ ministries.
18. Sexual Attraction
HC occasionally feel sexual attraction to others.
UC feel the same attraction but do not understand appropriate boundaries.
19. Being Anxious in Anxious Times
HC trust in the sovereignty of God that eases their anxiety in difficult times.
UC allow difficulties to increase their anxiety & makes them critical of others.
20. Who is the Savior?
HC recognize that God’s grace is made perfect in our weakness.
UC confuse salvation by personal effort with salvation by faith.
Your group may want to add other areas of contrast and include them in your continuum. As you explain them to each other, you may also find yourself adjusting your ratings. Have fun and enjoy yourself. It is not perfection but progress that you are seeking.
Don’t forget that God’s power is made perfect in our weakness and God’s grace often is made visible in unexpected ways.
