One of the intriguing and challenging statements that I heard at the recent Compassion Fatigue Conference was that “Disease is the absence of effective antibodies, not the presence of a toxic environment.” If you think about it, we know that a number of people can be in a cold, damp, windy environment and only some of them will catch a cold. Medical personnel can work around sick people and not contract the disease. Many people can be in stressful situations, but not all of them will burn out. We know that the pastorate is an increasingly stressful profession, but some are more capable of thriving than others in that atmosphere. Why is that?
When we speak of medical personnel not catching every disease that they treat, we often say that over time they have built up resistance and are able to ward off the diseases around them. The same can often be said of teachers who frequently work in an environment replete with viruses, etc. Transferring that to the area of compassion fatigue, the issue is how we can build up the resistance, or the antibodies that enable us to work within a stressful atmosphere and not be overwhelmed.
That was the essence of the conference, and over the next few days I want to describe what I learned about building up the necessary antibodies that enable us to not be defeated by the sometimes toxic and frequently stressful and demanding life of the pastorate.
Think of your own life and what you do that enables you to not be defeated by some of the draining and at times negative experiences in the ministry. When we can do a better job of resisting the effects of such an atmosphere, we are liberated to enjoy the deep satisfactions of the ministry more fully.
