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3 Colossally Simple Spiritual Practices Even You Have Time For

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Spiritual practices can be hard to incorporate into a busy life. We’ve made it easy, so this year you can live more abundantly than ever.

spiritual practices

Our real journey in life is interior. It is a matter of growth, deepening, and an ever greater surrender to the creative action of love.

Thomas Merton

Where do you find yourself on the journey as you live this present season? And how might God be inviting you onward and inward toward deeper connection?

Spiritual practices are a gift to us all. They can better our overall health and make space for our dance with God’s Spirit. However, we know you’re busy and building yet another thing into the day can seem daunting. So, we’ve included just three simple areas to explore.

We want to hear from you, too! Share with us what spiritual practices are life-giving to you. You may help another ministry leader discover the gift they’ve been hoping for.

spiritual practices

Unprepared

So, what if you’re feeling ready for the gift but ill-equipped to unwrap it? Maybe spiritual practices are uncharted territory, and you don’t know what to do. You aren’t alone.

Maybe you’re comfortable reading a story to children and asking them discussion questions. But perhaps you’re not so sure about spending time connecting with God. There’s no shame in this. You probably just weren’t taught.

Perhaps you grew up going to church, or maybe not. Those of us not exposed to a faith tradition growing up knowing little about spiritual formation. And, it isn’t all that different for those of us raised in the Church.

Practices that open space for encounter with the Divine often take backseat to institutional protocol.

As a result, you may know how to lead spiritual formation all the while feeling pretty parched spiritually yourself.

We don’t want this for you! And it doesn’t have to be that way. These three simple practices can help.

God Talk

Take a moment. How do you think about the Divine? A giant human residing in a realm not our own? Maybe nebulous energy that animates all living things? Something like the purest stuff of what we know to be love or wisdom? A watchful parent on the lookout for failures? Maybe some or all of these and more?

We come into adulthood with lots of what we were told as children about the Divine. Somewhere along the way, we learned other stuff. Some of that jives, and some doesn’t.

So, we make sense of it and are left with ideas that have come to the foreground and those that will never be forgotten but have receded.

Not surprisingly, how we think and talk about the Divine impacts the way we engage in spiritual formation.

Consider reflecting on how your thoughts about God influence your feelings about engaging in spiritual practices.

spiritual practices

Letting Go of Guilt

God is Love. And love isn’t about guilt. So, stop feeling guilty about your spiritual growth or lack thereof. You’re probably already parched. Why add to the load?

Just start where you are just as you are. That’s all you can do anyway in each given moment. And God asks no more of you. The Divine is always and everywhere no matter our capacity to engage. Therefore, presence and peace may abound.

Isn’t that wonderful? We can merely embrace spiritual practices with intention and presence. God beckons us.

How will you freely, joyfully, guiltlessly respond to the invitation this year?

spiritual practices

Spiritual Practices to Explore

Make Some Space

Our minds are saturated. We’re almost always watching a screen, responding to endless messages on various platforms, thinking a mile a minute.

It’s never been harder to clear our minds. And when we’re preoccupied with all that chatter, connection to Spirit is almost impossible. So, just practice clearing a little space in all the clutter.

First, find a quiet place alone. Then, pay attention to your thoughts. Notice each one. Make no judgment about it. Place it on a leaf or cloud and watch it float away until it’s out of sight.

De-clutter. Make space for Spirit connection. That’s it, friend.

Explore Scripture

We believe that holy scriptures are set apart as those that have the power to transform. They are living texts. So, use the life with which they’re infused to enrich yours.

Do you have a favorite verse in scripture? If not, pick one. It doesn’t have to be the “right” choice. Just choose what compels you even if you aren’t sure why.

Work with that scripture somehow and see what happens. Perhaps journal about it, exploring what it means to you. Research its background and context. Or practice lectio divina with it. Speak it in a breath prayer. Write it on your mirror with a dry erase marker. Try any of these.

spiritual practices

Get Outside

Manufactured stuff gives us so much. Offices and houses, chairs and couches, computers, phones, cars, trains. They serve us in so many ways. And so do the outdoors. But, sadly, many of us don’t see nearly enough of God’s creation outside.

You may find yourself rejuvenated by getting some sunshine and fresh air at the very least. And perhaps you’ll perceive the Spirit’s work in things like the seemingly effortless way leaves spring up from dormant branches. Maybe you’ll notice a feeling of unity with every atom that’s ever existed.

Sit or walk or run or hike or bike. Listen, look, smell, feel. However you’re compelled, get outside.

Become Still

Wherever you find yourself right at this moment, become still. It is the only moment that’s real and yours. God is ever in the present inviting you without expectation or demand to live abundantly into your whole self this new year and always.

We hope these three areas of spiritual practice can assist you in your quest. And don’t forget to share with us in the comments! What spiritual practices are serving you these days?

Breaking Through the Leader’s Struggle to Find Spiritual Growth

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Amid the spiritual growth you facilitate for others, have you been saving some of it for yourself? Maybe this is the year you recover your spiritual growth practices. Or maybe even discover them for the first time.

spiritual formation

Real Talk About Spiritual Health

If you’re teaching others about a relationship with God, your spiritual life is essential, both for their learning and your thriving. How do you stay connected to God as you walk the journey? Tell us in the comments!

Growth very often happens only when the necessary resources are available. So, your spiritual health is of top priority for you to grow and avoid burnout. If you’re giving of yourself, this is especially true.

Oh, and let me clarify. Spiritual health is all of you. Enjoying physical activity, eating foods that serve you, connecting with God. It’s all related. Think of it this way: Food is, in one category, the stuff we eat and, in another category, everything else that nourishes us. How are you feeding yourself?

Since the Spirit chooses every moment of every day to spend within you, spiritual formation can’t be separated from any of the ways you love and care for your whole self.

I recently saw Glennon Doyle speak and someone in the audience asked her how she takes care of herself amid all the work she does. This person was feeling depleted by the ministry she does. Glennon answered by saying she takes such good care of herself, it’s almost embarrassing. How many of us can say that??

Why is it tough to stay nourished while on this particular journey called church work?

spiritual growth

The Leader’s Struggle to Grow Spiritually

It may seem strange, but ministry leaders’ spiritual growth easily gets put on the back burner. And it’s understandable.

First, pouring into others can feel like you’re pouring into yourself…for a while. You’re around all the God stuff. But you’re presenting it and not experiencing it.

Unfortunately, you don’t receive spiritual sustenance by diffusion while working in a church. Given time, you can start feeling tired or parched or beaten up or overwhelmed or hopeless or all of it.

Second, nourishing kids in their faith requires so much of your time, energy, heart and mind. And work doesn’t end when you leave the office. It’s never done, and you take it with you almost everywhere you go. Your spiritual growth can feel like one more thing to add to an already over-crowded list of tasks.

Third, self-sacrifice is highly valued. When we’re doing “the Lord’s work” there’s an invisible line in the job description that many of us sign our names to: “This is my cross to bear. I will give of myself until I can no longer.”

spiritual formation

Rock and a Hard Place

Maybe you have felt stuck. Be still, care for yourself, and you’re not sacrificing enough. But, you’re teaching kids about God. So, you know you need to be growing spiritually. Kind of a rock and a hard place, huh?

Let’s be frank. There’s a culture in church work that isn’t good. This is important work. But, maybe it’s time to let go of the self-sacrifice, run yourself into the ground for the cause mentality.

I give you permission, ’cause Jesus gave you permission, to start thinking about your joy, your needs, your soul. Jesus needed the Garden of Gethsemane. What might you need? Get still and listen to your spirit.

spiritual formation

Get Some You Time

Spiritual growth is what happens naturally when we encounter the Divine in a way that changes us. It’s not another task to do the right way, but rather a gift for you to relish whenever you’re ready. 

We’re all on the journey together, meandering in and out of meaning and connection with God. What trail will you walk this year that will lead you toward some of both?

To start, get still and have some “you time.” In my next post, I’ll give you a few tools to use along the way.

To all that awaits you and yours in 2019!

And don’t forget. We want to hear what helps you stay connected to God as you walk the journey. Share in the comments below.

Make It Stop! Recover from This Year’s Holiday Burnout

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Holiday burnout is real! Working in ministry during the holiday season can get you feeling frantic and fatigued. Where were the joy and the wonder?

holiday burnout

You don’t have to feel this way!

We SO hope this hasn’t been true for you this year. Perhaps you found ways to stay energized as Autumn came and went and Winter settled in. But, if you’re finding yourself feeling frayed and frazzled, we’re here to help.

It’s so common in our world’s efficiency-driven culture to feel there isn’t enough to go around. Maybe you’ve found yourself in the quiet-ish moments craving calm and wishing there was a way to get it. You aren’t alone. And the better news? You don’t have to feel this way.

How are you recovering after the holidays? It takes a village to raise…ourselves. So, share with us and your ICM community in the comments below!

holiday burnout

Recovering from Holiday Burnout

Recovering from holiday burnout is not difficult. But it does take time and a lot of intention. If you’ve gotten yourself to a place of burnout, you’re the type who is likely used to it. I speak from more experience than I would like to admit: people who get burned out get burned out often.

Let’s just say, I’ve been there.

When I live without boundaries that are supportive of my overall health, I begin feeling disconnected from God, exhausted, and hopeless. And voila! I have arrived at almost total burnout.

So, how do we dig ourselves out of burnout after it has set in?

Rest.

First, slow down. Perhaps you need more sleep. Maybe you need more quiet time alone. Or, maybe you need to schedule a massage or read a fun book. Give your body and mind a break in whatever ways feel life-giving to you.

When we aren’t resting, it impacts everything. Body chemistry gets all messed up when we’re tired. Then, we see the world with less hope. Our children get a more irritable version of us. Our partner often feels less supported. We enjoy our experiences less.

Live a more abundant life. Rest more.

Do less.

72% of ministry leaders work 55-75 hours per week. You may need to say “no” more often than you feel like you “should.” If you’re one who’s prone to burnout, then you likely fill your plate to the edge and even beyond at times.

Burnout is an opportunity to change this pattern. It’s as though burnout is a call for help from your spirit. Will you take the chance to listen to your truest self?

This doesn’t need to be a complicated endeavor. Simply make some intentional shifts in how much you commit to. You will see an increase in the richness of your life if you do.

Exercise.

Over 50% of ministry leaders don’t exercise. Yo! This is important. If you’re not, start caring for your body. It is the temple of God’s Spirit, one of the myriad ways the Divine chooses to experience human reality every day.

Also, and maybe even more importantly, know that you are loved, you are loved, you are loved. Love yourself enough to take seriously your health.

And if you’re prone to burnout, you may be prone to all or nothing thinking. Let’s throw that out the window and just take a walk around the block a couple times a day. You don’t need to train for a marathon to be active. Just do something.

Pray.

Does this need an explanation? It’s common for us ministry leaders to get so preoccupied with the relational and administrative responsibilities of our role that we forget to get quiet with God.

When you sit down at your desk, take a few minutes to quiet the chatter of the mind and connect to what’s beyond all things and infuses all life.

holiday burnout

Holiday Burnout Indicators

Feeling Far from God

It’s common, when holiday burnout settles in, to begin feeling disconnected from our spiritual grounding. This makes sense. Our body, mind, and spirit are all entwined. If our life isn’t supporting our health, our spirit will undoubtedly be affected.

However we name the Divine, it is a shift in our own resources and, therefore, our ability to perceive God’s presence with us that causes the feeling of disconnection.

So, not sensing God and been pushing too hard? You’re probably burned out.

Feeling Exhausted

Perhaps it goes without saying, but being tired is almost always a tell-tale sign of burnout. If you arrive at the office or to the worship service struggling to muster the energy you need, it’s possible you have been stretching yourself too thin over the holiday season.

Several demands weigh upon the shoulders of ministry leaders during the holiday season. There’s event planning, volunteer coordinating, worship services to prepare for, maybe a play to rehearse, gifts to buy and wrap, travel to make happen, parties to attend, kids’ productions to see. The list goes on.

Oh, my word. It’s a busy time.

Can you see why you’re tired?

Feeling Hopeless

When we begin feeling tired and disconnected from God, we can lose hope in a general sense. If we lose our felt sense of connection to the Source of All Being AND we’re exhausted, our ministry can start to look bleak.

If you’re beginning to doubt that what you do matters, if there’s any point to your ministry, if your role is valuable…you are probably lacking hope. And without hope, it’s hard to stay in touch with vision. Connection to God, self-care, and vision for what can be, impact one another and a cycle easily forms that can lead to utter depletion if needs aren’t met.

Thus, burnout.

holiday burnout

Avoid Holiday Burnout Next Year

Avoid holiday burnout with some simple steps to keep yourself in check next year.

It’s our hope that you find rest for your mind, body, and soul. We hope you avoid burnout, but even more, that you experience abundance in your life. So, you have our permission to be protective of your time, energy, and relationships in the new year and beyond. You and all you love and serve will benefit.

And don’t forget to tell us what’s working for you in the comments below!