S2E9: Physical and Emotional Health

Well, hey everybody, I am honored to be sharing with you guys today, and I'm excited to get right into it. So, the big idea for our time together is this ministry can be physically and emotionally demanding. Therefore, maintaining physical health through exercise, nutrition, and adequate sleep, and maintaining emotional health through counseling and self-care is crucial. I'm gonna say that again. Ministry can be physically and emotionally demanding. Therefore, maintaining physical health through exercise, nutrition, and adequate sleep, and maintaining emotional health through counseling and self-care is crucial. So the question is: is ministry physically and emotionally demanding? And the answer is absolutely. As pastors, we all know this because we have one of the toughest jobs around. Not so much physically, but definitely emotionally and mentally. In our churches, there are so many people to minister to and so much ministry to do. There are so many meetings to conduct. And then you guys know the meetings after the meetings and conversations to have, and so many issues to deal with and problems to solve, so many texts and phone calls and emails to reply to, so many breakfasts and lunches and dinners. To attend. And on top of all that, we have the constant pressure of the weekend message hanging over our heads. How many of you guys know that Sundays come around with amazing regularity? We all know that. And since the demands of ministry are so great, as pastors, we find ourselves becoming drained, both physically and emotionally. Recently, I worked a 16-hour day and it Absolutely wiped me out. By the end of that very long day, I honestly didn't want to talk to anybody. I just wanted to collapse in my bed. So if I'm if I'm honest, I have to admit that sometimes I'm too busy. I'm too busy for my own good. And it's just not healthy. Which reminds me of the Chinese pictograph for the word busy. As you all know, in China they write in symbols or characters, pictographs, and the pictograph for the word busy is made up of two symbols. The symbol for the word heart and secondly the symbol for the word perishing. So in the Chinese language the message is very clear that if we're busy, too busy for too long, eventually we could do great damage to our hearts. And that leads me to our next point. And that is, if we don't take scheduled breaks, eventually our schedules will break us. If we don't take scheduled breaks, eventually our schedules will break us. Did you know the Lord wants us to take regular breaks? You see, God modeled rest both in creation and in the Christ. God modeled rest. In the creation account in Genesis 2, 1 through 3, it says, Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day, God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation. And so in six days, God created the heavens and the earth. The reason I'm using punctuation marks is because some of us believe in a 24-hour literal day, and others others of us believe in a day-age theory or long periods of time. This is not the time to get into all that, but in six days. Days, God created the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day, the Sabbath day, he rested. And so the Lord didn't rest, you know this, because he needed it. The eternal, infinite, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, sovereign God doesn't need to rest. Rather, he rested as an example for us to follow. He rested because he knows we need rest. And this is so important to him. His people resting was so important to him that he actually required it in the Ten Commandments. Commandment number four, Exodus 20, verse 8. Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. And so God modeled rest for us through the creation account, but also through the Christ. Regarding the life of Jesus, we often see in the gospel narratives that at certain strategic Times in the ministry of our Lord, he actually walked away from ministry to rest. He walked away from people. In fact, after a certain busy season of ministry, it says that in Mark chapter 6, verses 30 through 32, it says that the apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. And he said to them, Listen to this, come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest awhile. For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves. And so the King James Version translates Jesus' words as quote, Come ye apart into a desert place and rest awhile. And so the Lord said, Come apart, which leads us to our next point. You can see it there on your notes. If we don't come apart, eventually we'll come apart. It's called Burnout. Believe me, none of us want to experience that. It reminds me of a book that I read a long time ago. Maybe you've read it, ⁓ the book Leading on Empty by Wayne Cordero. And Pastor Wayne, a pastor out in Hawaii. Had just been going and going and going and going in ministry. And one day after he, I think he took a run, he found himself sitting on the curb uncontrollably weeping. He had hit his wall. He had ⁓ just got to that place of burning out in ministry. And none of us want to get to that place. So just as we take preventive measures and change the oil in our car every 3,000 or so miles. To avoid mechanical problems down the road. We need to take preventive measures and change the oil, so to speak, in our lives so we can avoid physical and emotional and mental problems down the road, so we can avoid burnout. So, in light of all this, let me encourage you to take regular breaks daily, weekly, quarterly, and annually. Regarding a daily break, every 24 hours we should come apart, maybe it's just for an hour or so, and we should do something that relaxes us, something that's fun. This could involve something relaxing like diving into an enjoyable book or TV show. And it could also involve something fun, like going to the gym, going for a brisk walk or a run or a bike ride. And it's important that whatever We decide to do it needs to fill us emotionally. It needs to be something that we really enjoy. Regarding a weekly break, every week we should come apart and rest on our day off or our Sabbath day. And on that special day, again, we gotta do something we enjoy or things we enjoy, things that fill our emotional tank. My wife and I are empty nesters, and since we not only love each other but actually like each other. Since we're best friends, we really look forward to our special Sabbath day. For us, it's Friday. Well, we can just take the whole day, 24 hours, and hang out together. And looking back now on 35 years of marriage, I can confidently say that nothing has helped to enrich our marriage more than spending quality time together on our Sabbath. And so it's so important that you hear this. On our day off, We should try not to do any ministry. We shouldn't check email. We shouldn't check the church's social media page. We shouldn't take ministry calls. We shouldn't reply to ministry texts. In fact, on my day off, I sometimes avoid driving by the church because I don't want to think about church issues on my Sabbath. Whatever that issue is, it can wait till tomorrow. And so we have daily breaks, we have weekly breaks. And then we have quarterly breaks. So every three months or so we should take a weekend off and allow one of our pastors or qualified elders to fill the pulpit. And that'll be good for that pastor or elder so they can develop their teaching gift. It'll be good for the congregation so they can see that there are other there are other gifted, ⁓ healthy leaders in the church, and it'll be good for you s unless or less you think. God isn't able to take care of his church in your absence. Daily breaks, weekly breaks, quarterly breaks, and of course an annual break or vacation, I would encourage you to take an extended vacation at least once a year where you can really be replenished. For the first time since planting our church 20 and a half years ago, my wife and I, this past June, we took three weeks off in a row. And then the fourth week in June, we went on the mission field together. So I was out of the pulpit for four weekends, and it was amazing. It infused us with emotional and physical and mental energy and drive to keep on keeping on for the rest of the year. So what should we do during our breaks? Well, next point: during our breaks, we should focus on our physical health through exercise, nutrition, and adequate sleep. It says in 1 Timothy 4 8, Paul told Timothy that, quote, bodily exercise profits little, but godliness is profitable for all things. So the Holy Spirit of God, who inspired the text through the Apostle Paul, said that bodily exercise profits us. At least a little. Therefore, we should engage in it on a regular basis. Regarding exercise, I make it my goal to do three strengths. Trainings and three cardio trainings every week. That's my goal. I don't always achieve my goal, but that's my goal. And when I do what I set out to do, it releases these wonderful chemicals called endorphins, which improve my mood and give me a natural high. Regarding nutrition, I make it my goal to eat a low-carb, low sugar, high-protein diet. Now I'm far from being an expert in diet and nutrition, so I encourage you to find a plan for of an expert, you know, and implement their plan. You may want to incorporate intermittent fasting. I do that a lot. I will eat and then go to sleep, and I won't eat again until 12 o'clock noon the next day. And that's supposed to do some wonderful things in your body which are above my pay grade. But my trainer tells me to do it, so I do it. Regarding sleep, I make it my goal to get a minimum of seven to eight hours a night, which is what the experts recommend. And if I get anything less than seven hours, you know, I just don't feel the same the next day. I'm dragging, and maybe it's all in my head, but it's real for me anyway. Now, health and wellness will never happen unless we're intentional about it. Therefore, on your notes, We have to find a plan, work a plan, and keep the plan. So, how many times have we got to step one? We found a really good plan, we got all excited, right? Maybe made out a plan, a schedule, and then we got to step two, work the plan, and that lasted for about a week or so, and we quit. That happened so many times, which is why step three is so important. We have to keep the plan, which means we need an Accountability partner. I have my son-in-law. My son-in-law Desio is a personal trainer. He comes to my house once a week for an hour. In fact, he's coming really soon here after I get done recording this. ⁓ So he'll be coming over and we'll be doing a lot of ⁓ training in my home. And I can tell you the intensity to which he which he pushes me. I would never in a million years do that if I was just by myself in the gym. And so I have an accountability partner. That helps me to not just find a plan, but helps me to work the plan and then keep the plan long term. So that's physical health. But what about emotional health? Well, there on your notes. During our breaks, we should focus on our emotional health through counseling and self-care. The psalmist writes: Blessed is the man or woman who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners. Nor sits in the seat of the scornful. But his or her delight is in the law of the Lord. And in that law they meditate day and night. They meditate day and night. And they shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that yields its fruit in its season, whose leaf does not wither, and whatever they do will prosper. And so instead of getting counsel from the ungodly, people who see the world through the lens of a secular humanistic worldview. We got to get our counsel from godly people who base their counsel on the word of God, who would advise us according to the scriptures. And when we consistently meditate on God's word and we implement the godly counsel that people give us from the word of God, we find ourselves spiritually and emotionally being like that healthy. tree that's planted by the rivers of water, and whatever we do that's in God's will prospers. Back in 2021, I finished my master's degree and graduated from Veritas International University. And so Stacy and I celebrated that accomplishment by going to Philadelphia. We had a blast. We visited Independence Hall, the Historic District, the Liberty Bell, the Betsy Ralph's House, and my favorite site of all, we went to the Museum of Art. And the reason I like that site so much is because. That's where Rocky ran up the famous 72 steps in his 1976 Academy Award-winning film. So, like Rocky, I ran up those steps and I got to the top and I jumped up and down and I yelled, I did it, rejoicing that with God's help, I finished my master's and Stacy got it all on video. And she, of course, put the Rocky music behind it, and we still watch it and laugh to this day. But what no one knows. Is that the four years prior to my graduation were some of the most difficult years of my life? Not only was I leading a growing church with everything involved in that, and not only was I overseeing our new Christian school, which is very demanding, I was also working on this degree in theology, and that was really demanding. Some of you may think I'm joking right now, but afterwards when I graduated. I literally needed therapy. My intense schedule during those years triggered something that laid dormant inside of me for years. And that's OCD. I don't have time to tell you the story of my struggle with OCD, but I will tell you two things. First of all, it's not a quote unquote noble lie, like a certain prominent evangelical recently said. And secondly, I needed therapy and medication to overcome it. It's sad to me that in many churches, if someone comes in with an illness from their neck down, they're perceived as normal. But if anyone dares to admit in our churches that they have a mental illness, an illness from the neck up, they're perceived by many, unfortunately, as not normal or weird, or as believing a noble lie. The truth is, we all live in a fallen world where we all struggle with various illnesses above and below our necks. So if the church is going to be a hospital for the sick rather than a museum for the self-righteous, we have to learn to love and accept and care for all people that God sends our way. All people that are struggling with all different kinds of things. And I'm really grateful that through therapy and medication, I've been walking in victory over OCD now for two and a half years. But God forbid that I should ever go back to such a busy schedule, such a heart-killing schedule that I find myself defeated again by mental mental illness. So, what's our big idea? The big idea is that ministry can be physically and emotionally demanding. Therefore, maintaining physical health through exercise and nutrition and adequate sleep and maintaining emotional health through counseling and self-care is absolutely crucial. And it's the only way that we can be the best that we can be for the Lord, our wife, our kids, our staff, and our church. I enjoyed sharing this devotional with you guys. Before I go, I want to give you ⁓ a couple of book recommendations. One I already mentioned was Leading on Empty. I just downloaded it to my my ⁓ audible here. So Leading on Empty by Wayne Cordero. So I encourage you to get that. And another one that I read of about five years ago is called Replenish, and that's by Lance Witt. We had him come and ⁓ speak to our staff in the past and he did a really really good job but looking forward to the conversation that follows this. Take care.