October is Mental Health Awareness month, and this week in particular is Mental Illness Awareness week. 1 in 5 U.S. adults experience mental illness each year 1 in 6 U.S. youth aged 6-17 experience a mental health disorder each year These are individuals in our communities, in our churches, in our...
In the world of United Methodist clergy, July marks beginnings for some. New appointments. New retirements. New ministerial status. New appointive year, even if you are staying in the same appointment. New things to think about. As we enter into July, I invite you to remember your call. It ...
Christ is Risen indeed! Clergy of the Great Plains Conference, thank you for your incredible ministry, and especially the intentional work of planning, preparing and leading for Holy Week. Thank you for the multitude of ways you allow God to work through you in all that you do. I hope that you ...
Tell me your story. Or sit in silence. Ask your questions. Or weep and gnash your teeth. Your grief is real and deep. And may look very different than your neighbor’s grief that is real and deep too. When Lazarus died there were Marys. And Marthas. Family members, friends, and strangers. And Jesus....
I took my very first First Aid Training when I was 13 years old. I took my very first Mental Health First Aid Training last month. I’m not sure why it took me so long to take the Mental Health First Aid Training. Probably a multitude of factors. I did not know about it. It did not seem as widely...
What Path Will We Take When Our Bodies Break? What path will we take When our bodies break? Not if, but when, For we are finite and human. It may be a leg or arm, Or something deep having harm. Bodies are fragile and strong Fantastic, awe-filled … and things can go wrong. If you ask me about mine ...
They have given up hospital visits because no one was allowed in. They have given up time with family, friends, colleagues, parishioners, and community partners. They have given up presiding over huge wedding celebrations because numbers for gatherings have been limited. They have given up ...
How is it with your soul? I continue to find my soul needs more and more tending the more and more stress, change, anxiety, fear, chaos, and questions I experience. I find in order to do this tending, I need more and more prayer, discernment, and intentional Sabbath. We are in a liminal season. ...
Thank you, Great Plains Clergy, for the multitude of ways you continue to live out your call to ministry. The stories of what is unfolding of how God is at work in and through you and those around you are incredible. Christ's light is shining in abundant measure because of you. I also see some ...
I have been thinking about faith and wellness a lot lately. I've wondered: how my faith affects my wellness, how my faith affects the wellness of others, how my wellness affects my faith, how my wellness affects the faith of others, how my faith affects my faith, how my faith affects the ...
Today on my calendar, I, like many of you, would have been attending the opening day of Annual Conference of the Great Plains Conference. I have been attending Annual Conference since I was 14 years old. It is a part of me. It is family. It is home. It is where laity and clergy come together to ...
One in five people will experience a mental illness in their lifetime. May is Mental Health Month. Most of the clergy that I have talked with in the past two months have experienced challenges that affect their mental health and well-being. If you are experiencing a mental health challenge, you ...
I didn't know I had so many tears. Today I took a walk, because I know the importance of physical activity, especially in the midst of stress and distress. I wept. I wept as I walked by the house of my son's music teacher, knowing that tonight would have been his school music program, in which he...
The list of responsibilities these past few weeks has been ever-growing, ever-changing. It has opened up times to think about new opportunities. For me, I have also been overwhelmed. I have found myself in the midst of moments with renewed creativity and exploring uncharted waters. I have found ...
Clergy, It is OK to give yourself permission to grieve. At an unprecedented time of facing a pandemic, many people are experiencing various stages of grief ... denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance, meaning-making. (See works by Elisabeth Kubler Ross and David Kessler for more related ...
How is your heart? It is American Heart Month, and as United Methodists who understand the power of a “heart strangely warmed,” I invite you to look at your heart. How is it physically, emotionally and spiritually? I care about your hearts and offer this invitation to the clergy of the Great Plains ...
Thank you for your courageous leadership. Thank you for your faithfulness in proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ. Thank you for living out your call at such a time as this. I see you. I see you serving countless hours, ministering to, with, and on behalf of your mission fields. I see you ...
It is December in a local church. A parishioner was recently diagnosed with cancer. A friend began in hospice care. A teacher was killed in a car accident, due to icy road conditions. There are 27 Christmas programs, worship services, or events to plan, attend, and manage. There are two weddings ...
Thank you. Thank you Clergy. Thank you Clergy families. Thank you congregations for supporting clergy. October is clergy appreciation month. Can you name one clergy person who has been a part of your faith journey in a powerful way? In honor of that pastor, would you be willing to share an act of ...
The Great Plains has experienced many storms, struggles, and disasters in the past year ... blizzards, floods, hail, tornadoes and earthquakes. Many of you have experienced these or know others who are living in the aftermath. There are also many clergy who have experienced storms of life in the ...
This is the faith and wellness blog I didn’t want to write. I have shied away from the topic of physical health, out of fear that I would hurt someone with whatever I would say. I feared that nothing I could write on physical health would be able to also express care for my clergy colleagues. I know...
"I just can't do it anymore," — a statement made by a clergy colleague. Maybe you've made the statement at some point in ministry, as well. There are times when being clergy is an incredible gift, an honor, a calling that exceeds any expectation. There are times when being clergy is exhausting,...
I am not a big fan of moving. Growing up, I moved one time, from in-town to out-of-town. I didn’t have to leave friends, my church, or my community. Then I was ordained and agreed to live into this new life of itinerancy, which I had no idea what exactly that would mean. I didn’t know that with each...
It was January 7. I only remember the date because it was the day after Epiphany when I had an epiphany moment. I was out walking around my neighborhood, basically to try and shake out some unsettled things within me. I had been stewing over my health, work stuff, family, life. I knew that often a ...
Clergy of the Great Plains Conference, Thank you to those who planned for and participated in the recent Great Plains Orders and Fellowship meeting. The vulnerability, strength, honesty and encouragement from the presenters, workshop leaders, Bishop Saenz and Rev. Dr. Kevass Harding, and the ...
Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, just as it is well with your soul. 3 John 1:2 (NRSV) Friends, I do indeed pray for you. Ministry is an incredible calling, and responsibility. Many of you have just led others through the seasons of Advent, Christmas, ...
Anxiety weighs down the human heart, but a good word cheers it up. – Proverbs 12:25 (NRSV) Consider the following statement. This Advent I… am experiencing anxiety, stress, fear, like there is too much too do, etc. am centered in the word of God. am doing all my spiritual practices that I can,...
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