All professions have their impact on the families of the person in that profession. You could probably name both positive and negative impacts on you family due to your being a clergy. Whether your family is your spouse or includes children or parents, it is important to recognize and name the various ways that those other members are affected by your profession.
One of the healthier activities that you could take would be to have that conversation with the members of your family. Don’t wait until there is a major crisis but create a fun environment for that conversation. Make a game out of it. I don’t know whether anyone plays spin the bottle these days but it could be the setting for your game.
Get in a circle with a bottle in the middle. Someone spins the bottle and sees where it points when it comes to a rest. That person must describe one negative and one positive effect of being in a clergy family. Its important that both are identified so that you don’t just get into a negative conversation. If you really want to make it interesting, spin the bottle twice. The first person chosen must describe a way in which they think the ministry is negative and a way it is positive in the life of the second person indicated by the bottle spin.
After you have played the game for a half-hour or more, change the rules. Now the person chosen has to describe how the family could work together to lessen a negative impact or to enhance a positive impact.
Develop prizes for the best responses and negative consequences for the least good response. Maybe they have to make a person’s bed or clean up the dishes. Or perhaps the person with the best response can sit there while someone else prepares for them a drink or some ice cream. The main idea is to have some fun while both recognizing how the ministry has affected members of the family and how the family can support each other in coping with the pressures.
Have fun.
