Judy Carter, in her book The Comedy Bible suggests an exercise that can translate directly into the life of a pastor and has the possibility of altering his or her emotional state. Her assignment is to write a thank-you note to someone at least once a week. She tells of mentoring a fifteen-year-old high school student “who has a lot of reasons to be resentful about her lot in life. She has no father and lived in one room in a motel in Compton with her four siblings and her mother, who was on welfare. By writing one thank-you note a week, she went from a whiner to a winner.”
It almost seems too simple but consider its power in your life as a clergy. There are lots of times when you can be drained by all the pain you absorb from others as well as the challenges of being a pastor. It is easy to become mired down by the negative. Now, stop at least once a week and consider someone who is someone or has done something for which you can express thanks. Two things happen. First, in a world of rapid communication, someone receives a handwritten note from someone who appreciated them. Two, you have found another reason to be thankful in your own life.
I would challenge you to do that for at least four months and see if it doesn’t have a positive effect on your own perspective on life while making numerous other people feel better in their lives.
