Thrive_Autumn 2019 digital issue

thrive-magazine.ca
thrive / 17
David Horita, Regional Director of Fellowship Pacific
Sabbaticals are awesome, but
you have to know what they are
for and ensure they achieve that
result. While all sabbaticals tend
to follow policy guidelines, those
guidelines should be sufficiently
broad to make sure you get the
outcome the sabbatical was designed
for.
My first sabbatical was intended to provide relief from the
stress of concurrent ministry and academic demands. It allowed
me to complete my Doctor of Ministry degree, which
was primarily focused on creating a hands-on leadership
development program for the church. By having a dedicated
three months to complete the program, the church was
also able to have a defined leadership program in place for
the September start of the ministry year.
The second sabbatical was 10 years later and had a different
focus. This sabbatical was simply designed to give a break
from the people and leadership push of our Regional office.
As such, the goal was to be completely clear of ministry demands
and processes. The “activity” of this sabbatical was
digging, filling, and placing a backyard patio without any
power tools or machines. It provided an opportunity for
physical work that was nothing like my normal job. I was
happy to go back to the office once the sabbatical was done!
Jeff Germo, Lead Pastor,
Campbell River Baptist Church,
Campbell River, BC
I didn’t take a sabbatical to further
my education or to prevent burn
out. I took my sabbatical because
I was already burned out. I was at
the place in my ministry where,
if I didn’t do something different,
my time in ministry would be cut short.
A couple of things led to my burnout. One was that the
church had gone through five years of very intense
culture shift. I won’t dwell on that one because if it
weren’t for the second reason, I probably could have
handled the pressures of ministry better. The prime
reason I burned out was because I am a recovering
performance addict. It really came down to the fact
that I didn’t trust God enough to stop and rest.
It was my staff who lovingly but firmly faced me
with the fact that I needed to take a sabbatical.
They saw the signs. I gave them permission to
contact Dale, our board chair, who immediately
met with each of them, and with my wife
Ruthie and me, to come up with a sabbatical
plan. The first step was a retreat at Oasis
Leadership Ministries, complete with three
days of intensive counselling to get to the
root cause of my burnout.
The total time we took off was ten weeks.
We stayed almost completely disconnected
from the church and practiced
trusting God. That is my big lesson. I
need to practice what I preach—that
God is God and I am not, and I can
trust Him.
CLERGY
CARE
1∙888∙5∙CLERGY
Focus on the Family provides an important and meaningful
service to those in pastoral ministry — their Clergy
Care hotline. Pastors and their families can call toll-free
and speak with professionally-trained counsellors who
help them deal with their struggles, all with the reassurance
that Clergy Care ensures strict confidentiality. If you or
someone you know in pastoral ministry is in need of help (or
even just a listening ear), don’t hesitate to use this wonderful
ministry! Call their toll-free number today: 1-888-5-CLERGY.