Healing for the Healers

This little piece from Terry Mattingly - at tmatt.net - was just recommended to me.

As one who has "been there and done that" with the whole depression and burnout thing, I can say that this little piece captures quite well the need for ministers - "healers" - to be healed and refreshed. Pastors need not be afraid of or shy away from their own need to be healed and renewed. After all, theirs is a demanding vocation of giving Christ-centered, forgiveness-focused healing to other people as well as dealing with the messy, viscious ugliness and fallout of human sin, even from the baptized in the flock. Also, parishioners need not stigmatize their pastor's need for healing and care. After all, when their pastor is healthy--spiritually, mentally, and physically--then they will benefit not only from his services of preaching, teaching, and visiting, but also from his example that all of life is lived only by the grace and mercy of our loving God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

DOXOLOGY Notes: “Shepherding Souls” (part 1)

This post continues looking back at, summarizing, and reflecting upon the sessions of the recent DOXOLOGY session, “The Gathering,” which I attended 25-28 January in Springfield, IL.

In the second session of DOXOLOGY’s “The Gathering,” the Rev. Dr. Harold Senkbeil spoke on the subject of “Shepherding Souls: The Classic Model for the Care of Souls in Contemporary Practice.” In this session Dr. Senkbeil focused our attention on the traditional term used by Lutherans for pastoral work: “seelsorge” – the “care/cure of souls.”

As the “spiritual physician,” the pastor’s primary work centers on the Latin phrase “cura animarum.” Dr. Senkbeil translated that phrase in two ways and then drew out the implications of both. First, “cura animarum” can be translated “cure of souls.” Dr. Senkbeil suggested that we view this as the intervention or “crisis care” of souls in acute distress because of sin and death. The phrase “cura animarum” can also be translated “care of souls.” This, Dr. Senkbeil said, we might consider the “specialized care” or, in my words, the “ongoing care” of the soul dealing with the chronic, long-term distress of sin and death.

Dr. Senkbeil wanted to start his presentation with “cura animarum,” or for the more German-minded, seelsorge, because in our contemporary context we are confronted with various and competing models for the office of the holy ministry. Dr. Senkbeil listed these models, and I give my handwritten notes and comments in italics:

• Pastor as CEO – The church is viewed as a corporation. It hires the pastor to “get things done.” Thus, the hire-fire mentality plaguing our churches.
• Pastor as Ringmaster – The pastor keeps the activities of the congregation going and keeps the organizational wheels well oiled.
• Pastor as Hand Holder – The pastor is the “go-to” guy when you’re feeling down. He may be able to help. And besides, the price is right.
• Pastor as Arbiter – Feuding brothers (congregation members) want the pastor to make peace, or at least tell each side that he/she is in the right and the other….
• Pastor as Advisor – Well, not really. Some people just want the pastor’s blessing for what they’ve already decided.
• Pastor as Seelsorger/Physician of Souls – (Already covered above.)

Having then set the stage for understanding the pastor’s task as the “care/cure of souls,” Dr. Senkbeil gave ten theses for “The Anatomy of the Care of Souls.” Again, my comments from notes and reflections appear in italics.

• Thesis One: All spiritual care is the care that God the Holy Trinity provides through His Word in both oral and visible form. We pastors only bring people into “proximity of God and His gifts”; He does the work of healing souls.
• Thesis Two: This care is received by faith. We pastors emphasize trust in Jesus.
• Thesis Three: Faith comes by hearing. That’s how we pastors operate—making sure there are no barriers to hearing God’s words. Dr. Senkbeil’s illustration: clearing out the under brush or the clutter of life in order that people may better hear God’s promises.
• Thesis Four: Devil, world, and flesh conspire against faith. (“misbelief, despair and other great shame and vice”) The greatest sins attack faith, that is, giving up on God.
• Thesis Five: Pastoral care focuses on enabling the soul to hear the Word it needs in the context of its distress.
• Thesis Six: Pastors attentively discern what threatens faith; then intentionally address that threat with the Word of God.
• Thesis Seven: Pastors baptize people into the death and resurrection of Christ for the forgiveness of sins. Baptism is not just a one-time event; all of life is the living out of one’s Baptism.
• Thesis Eight: Pastors forgive the sins of penitent sinners and retain the sins of the impenitent so long as they do not repent. Absolution is the key. The sacraments are central to the pastor’s work—his primary “tools” in the “toolbox” of pastoral care. We want to use the “laser beam of the Gospel” in the “surgical process” of caring for the soul, much like lasers used in medical surgeries requiring precision.
• Thesis Nine: Pastors distribute the Body and Blood of Christ for the forgiveness of sins and to strengthen and preserve baptized believers in both body and soul.
• Thesis Ten: Pastors teach souls to pray for what God promises in His Word and bless them in the Name of the Holy Trinity, applying the promises of His Word individually and specifically. If the disciples needed to say, “Lord, teach us to pray,” then so do our parishioners and we. And we pray for more than the pressing need of the moment; we pray for God to give and strengthen faith. We also do well to bless the soul for whom we are caring, placing a hand on the person’s head and speaking a blessing. To bless a person is to give the promises of God in His words.

Just in case the references to “souls” seems a bit odd, Dr. Senkbeil later explained what he meant by using the term to refer to the person. The soul, Dr. Senkbeil said, is not something you have, but who you are. It refers to the whole individual or person in relation to God (Latin: coram Deo). Remember the Psalm that says, “Bless the LORD, O my soul”? It refers to the whole person created, redeemed, and made holy by Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

How do we pastors put this understanding of “care/cure of souls” into practice? We’ll cover that next time.

DOXOLOGY Notes: Intersection of Psychotherapy and Pastoral Care

In my last post I praised the recent DOXOLOGY retreat which I was privileged to attend. Beginning with this post, God willing, I want to give a series of summations and reflections on what I heard and learned at DOXOLOGY. I will follow the outline notes that all of us received in our handy-dandy binder, along with some of my hand-written notes and some reflections and commentary as I look back on the points made by the two presenters. While I hope that these posts of summary and reflection are helpful to all who read them, please let me say at the outset that they are not intended to replace attending and taking part in DOXOLOGY first-hand. Though I joyously want others to know what great things are to be had at a DOXOLOGY retreat, nothing can compare to "being there" and experiencing everything, from the worship to the sessions to the camaraderie. Dr. Harold Senkbeil and Dr. Beverly Yahnke deserve all the credit for anything good and salutary you may find here, and, of course, any inaccuracies due to things such as distraction while listening, failing memory or illegible handwriting, belong solely to me. I hope you enjoy these posts, and I especially hope that they will spark a desire for my brothers in the pastoral office to attend DOXOLOGY themselves.

The topic of psychotherapy may make some pastors a tad uncomfortable. I know that it used to raise the red flags for me. “What does secular, humanistic counseling have to do with the pastor’s task of preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ and giving out His life-giving Sacraments?” I used to ask. Too often we pastors, at least some of us, tend to dismiss wholesale the psychological disciplines and helps.

In recent years, though, I am coming to appreciate the First Article gifts of wisdom and cures in the mental health disciplines, both for myself and for my parishioners. No, that does not make me a “counselor” or “psychologist,” nor will I try to play one in my study or on TV. Yes, treating the mind and addressing human behaviors, healthy and unhealthy, are salutary and just down-to-earth helpful human endeavors.

The first session of DOXOLOGY addressed “Word, Sacrament and Psychotherapy.” Dr. Beverly Yahnke did a great job of showing the healthy intersection of psychotherapy and pastoral care while at the same time opening our eyes to the specific problematic aspects of the psychological disciplines. Let’s call it learning to cut with a scalpel rather than an axe. Instead of dismissing psychotherapy wholesale (the axe approach), let’s learn to receive the good First Article gifts that come down from the Father of lights in this area while steering away from those aspects that reject God and faith (the scalpel approach).

Since Dr. Yahnke has discovered first-hand the bias that many psychologists have against God and faith, she helps us discern the wheat from the chaff in the realm of counseling. Of course, secularists in the field reject all expressions of faith. Empathic responders ignore faith and respond merely to feelings. For them the counseling relationship is paramount and most helpful. On the other end of the spectrum we may encounter nouthetic counselors who reject all secular methodology and believe that the only useful treatment consists of repentance, forgiveness and trust in God. Finally, we can learn to spot the integrationists, those who take the best of the psychological methods and subject them to Scripture. In this realm, which I understand Dr. Yahnke to advocate, psychology has its salutary place, but it stops where God’s Word and the state of the soul begins. Think of an intersection, and not just a one-way road.

Many of us may already be familiar with the “creed of secular psychology,” but it’s always helpful to review it. In secular psychology, we are told to find our own truth, after all everyone has his/her own truth, and then we are told to find comfort in that self-determined truth. We are also told to take care of number one, shaping ourselves, working to achieve whatever good gift we determine we may want. And, of course, we must learn to forgive ourselves. Along with that comes the notion that we are not responsible for many of the things that are wrong in our lives. After all, people are innately good, says the secular psychological creed. Other tenets to this creed include: following a program (a certain number of steps) leads to health and success; happiness is a sufficient therapeutic goal; suffering is meaningless; and the therapists themselves are essential for healing.

With such humanistic underpinnings, we may wonder why our good laypeople so actively prefer psychotherapy to a pastor’s spiritual care. Here’s where the rubber of DOXOLOGY hits the road for pastoral work in the congregation. (And pastors, go ahead and get that little target out and place it right between your eyes. That’s what this part of the presentation did for me and, I would guess, many brothers also in attendance.)

Why do our good lay folk prefer psychotherapy to good ol’ Christ-centered spiritual care from one’s pastor? Dr. Yahnke gave these reasons:

• Even the best of Lutherans uses “pre-emptive personal pardon.” In other words, our good lay folk are quite used to saying, “I can forgive myself,” and hence they see and feel little need for the pastor or the church.
• Many in our pews simply are not aware that their pastor desires to offer spiritual care. As Dr. Yahnke would plead on behalf of her fellow laity: “Pastor, teach us what you do in offering Confession and Absolution, praying with us, and giving blessings.”
• Often we pastors (yes, I include myself in this indictment) are too engaged with the job of running the parish, the “organizational jungle gym,” as Dr. Yahnke called it. How many times have you, pastor, said, “I’m just too busy”?
• Pastors may be regarded as out of touch with real life. Our people may wonder if we really do get dirty with sin, sickness, and other problems. They may wonder if we know the challenges of being a father, and if we struggle with that parenting stuff as they do.
• Not everyone trusts his/her pastor to honor a confidence. Let that one sink in, brothers, especially when we gather together over food and libations and “let our hair down” with each other! Our people need to hear plenteous reassurances that all they discuss with their pastor will be kept confidential.
• Fear of the pastor’s personal judgment is a sufficient deterrent to seeking pastoral care. As Dr. Yahnke quipped, they may very well fear the pastor more than they fear God Himself. They know He is just and good; they’re not so sure about the pastor.
• Pastors may be so light-hearted and upbeat that they are unapproachable. (Very interesting, I thought.) Would the light-hearted, ever-upbeat pastor really take the dark secrets of the soul seriously?
• Finally, pastoral care is not “in,” that is, it is not socially sanctioned. Everyone knows about running to the counselor in time of need, but going to one’s pastor? Well, it’s not quite the culturally acceptable or common thing.

With all of this in mind, our people may not perceive their pastors as “experts,” but they know that they want the best services available. Also, our people begin to suspect that clergy cannot really do anything to help, especially if we clergy trivialize what we have to offer. How many of us pastors have thought, or even said, “Well, I only have God’s Word and Sacraments”? Yes, that may be “all” we have, but there’s no “only” about it. They really are mighty powerful tools—the Holy Spirit’s tools—for healing our most infectious contagion called sin and death, and thus affecting our health in other ways as well.

What can we pastors to do remedy this disconnect that truly exists in the minds and expectations of our people? Dr. Yahnke again made an appeal to pastors, as if speaking for all of our lay people, but I’ll speak from pastor to pastors.

We pastors must speak powerfully in the face of our post-modern culture. After all, our sheep are grazing in those pastures every day. Our people need to see that spirituality as revealed and given in the Scriptures is the real venue to genuine happiness. We pastors need to preach regularly on vocations such as mother and father, on the holy estate of marriage, and on receiving the love of the living God and His eternal yet presently life-changing gifts.

Our people do not want us to “get in the way” of God’s Word. They want us to talk about God and His Word, yes, but they also want us to talk in understandable ways and in terms that show we understand the life in which they live, work, rest and play.

While we pastors know it intellectually, we certainly do well to hear our people tell us: “Sir, we would see Jesus.” In all that we do and say, in all of our preaching and teaching, our people want to see Jesus. And, as Dr. Yahnke mentioned, we do well to boil it all down to two sentences or concepts that we want our people to take home with them.

We pastors also need to hear this one from Dr. Yahnke. Speaking for our good lay folk, Dr. Yahnke said, “We need both reverence and joy.” I love that coupling of terms and notions. Yes, our people need to see us act with reverence in the Divine Service and in prayer offices. That reverence underscores, as she said, the reality of Christ’s presence among us. However, our people also need to see the joy we have at being in His presence, proclaiming His words of forgiveness, life, and salvation, and giving out His gifts in water and meal. Our people do need to see us conducting the liturgy, as well as our whole office, with real life joy, not as mechanical automatons. Reverence and joy need not be mutually exclusive.

Our people need to hear their life’s issues cast into religious language, into terms that show they are dealing with spiritual realities, not just the day-to-day challenges that come rushing at them.

Related to this, our people would tell us they need to hear us, their pastors, talk about idolatry, the idolatry of their daily living—with idols such as money, success, and their own man-made, self-devised answers to their various problems. Dr. Yahnke offered a great picture for this when she referred to Luther’s treatment of the First Commandment in the Large Catechism. We need to hear our people speaking her words: “Pastor, super-size our Catechism.” I take that to mean, “Show us how our daily idolatries go against God and His will for us to look and cling to Him for every gift and blessing.”

Here’s one final thing Dr. Yahnke suggested that we pastors can do to teach and remind our people that we are there, in the congregation, to be their “spiritual physician.” Our people need to hear us preach about the implications of faith not only in eternity (“Jesus died for us, and someday we’ll get to go to heaven and be with Him.”), but also in time. After all, our hope in Christ is not only for “eternal life”; it’s also for life now. We need to preach not only “justification”—yes, it’s the central doctrine!—we also need to preach the hope that’s present now, the eager expectation that our gracious, forgiving, loving Savior is at work now to help and heal us with His cross-won forgiveness and His resurrection life.

Dr. Yahnke’s outline for this first session of DOXOLOGY ends with some questions upon which we pastors do well to reflect. I cite them here for my brothers in Office because, after all, a little reflection and self-evaluation can’t hurt…too badly…can it? (Good lay folk who read this, feel free to "turn the volume down" now. If you do choose to read these reflection questions for pastors, please don’t go to your pastor and say, “Hey, you’d better think about these things, Buddy.” ☺)

• How is it that my parishioners actually see me?
• Am I regarded as approachable? Too busy? Too aloof?
• What are the chief characteristics that I would appreciate in a pastor to whom I would turn for help?
• What are my expectations about how another pastor would treat me?
• What areas of my ministry do I want to examine mindfully in light of this conversation?
• What is my current comfort level in providing care to people who have spiritual and emotional problems?
• What is my level of comfort in collaborating with Christian psychologists or other mental health providers?

Pastors, Get Thee to...

And good lay people, encourage, urge, and insist that your pastor enroll in DOXOLOGY, support him, provide registration costs for him to attend, etc. Do whatever you can (except force him against his will, of course) to be nourished, edified, and fed on Christ's life in the forgiveness of sins and to grow in his spiritual care for himself, for you and for the rest of the flock.

Pastors, I cannot recommend DOXOLOGY highly enough. You will grow and benefit immensely--in being fed via the many opportunities for prayer (the Prayer Offices of the Church replete with great music and excellent preaching), in being renewed in the purpose and calling of your vocation as "shepherd of souls," and in learning many good First Article things in the area of psychology and counseling, and from a uniquely Christian, Gospel-centered perspective.

As you can probably tell, I'm rather impressed with the DOXOLOGY retreat from which I returned last evening. After four days of worshiping with brothers (simply being fed) and learning at the feet of Dr. Harold Senkbeil and Dr. Beverly Yahnke, Executive Directors, my own sense of being a "pastor," a "shepherd of souls," a "physician of souls" has been greatly restored. My own sense of tending to things that really matter--relying on God's grace in Christ, taking care of self and family, and shepherding the souls given by God--has been greatly refreshed.

I must admit, though, I had to be pushed. I had to hit the brick wall of depression and burnout. (I guess God really does need to hit me over the head to put some sense into me! :-) But I also had the benefit of one caring layman, an elder, who insisted that I enroll in as part of my sabbatical rest, renewal, and rejuvenation. I thank God for this faithful Christian man who wanted me to be restored--and returned to--my proper sense of vocation.

As I waxed poetic on Tuesday evening of the retreat at Chiara Retreat Center in Springfield, IL (more about that wonderful site another time), I just had to jot down this little reflection, to which I've added a little spit and polish this morning:

I have just (re-)discovered first hand the salutary intersection of Theology Highway and Psychology Boulevard. DOXOLOGY is the intersection of Theology and Psychology as it trains pastors in the art of spiritual care for the soul and opens their eyes to the world of dealing with the psyche, the emotions, mental illnesses such as despair and depression, and the new term and art of discerning “emotional intelligence” (a.k.a. EQ), all in service to our new life and healing in Christ Jesus. As the traffic of spiritual life (repentance, faith, sin, forgiveness, prayer, blessing, etc.) and personal life (emotions, depression, conflicts, crises, etc.) pulses through this intersection, the pastor learns how to work much as the traffic light in a busy intersection. (No, the pastor is not “traffic cop,” as we have heard and learned.) He learns how the traffic of spiritual life and life affected by so many physiological and psychological factors can merge and be brought to order by God’s grace and the forgiveness of Jesus Christ, both for himself and for his people. And when we remember that this intersection is cross-shaped, we also remember that the Cross of Christ itself is what gives the only true, beneficial shape to our spiritual life as well as our daily life affected so much by the disease of sin.

The Doxology website gives this overview of the whole program:

DOXOLOGY seeks to restore and recover the classic Christian legacy of the cure of souls for contemporary times. The Center provides training, mentoring, and consultation services for those who seek to improve their ability to provide spiritual care and counseling.

The primary purpose of this organization is to provide ongoing spiritual care opportunities for Lutheran pastors. Participants will be refreshed and equipped as a result of their participation in a program of soul care grounded in Holy Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions. The Center provides an excellent setting for clergy to reflect on their own spiritual health and offers a program carefully crafted to help them review and enhance their professional competencies and skills. DOXOLOGY strengthens pastors so they can more faithfully pastor others.

You can also preview the program's curriculum and objectives at the Doxology website:

The program curriculum:

1. Provides resources, insights, teaching, admonition, encouragement, new tools and strategies needed to move beyond “survival functioning in pastoral ministry” to joyful service in the pastoral life and calling.
2. Provides opportunities for immediate and ongoing care to nurture and encourage pastors whose personal lives may have been burdened by stress and isolation or wounded by sin, depression, conflict, fear, or hopelessness.
3. Yields critical insights to enhance the practice and pedagogy of spiritual care and counsel.
4. Benefits from team casuistry and the experience of fellow pastors enrolled in this renewal experience.

Pastors participating in DOXOLOGY will:

1. Prize and embrace their identity as called and ordained servants of God.
2. Explore the art of spiritual care and enhance their skills as physicians of the soul so as to help those entrusted to their care to find health and healing in God through His gracious Word and Sacraments.
3. Have an opportunity to benefit from receiving individual spiritual care and personal counsel.
4. Establish and maintain meaningful professional relationships with peers through personal interaction.
5. Return to their parish renewed, strengthened, and equipped in their vocation to preach, teach, and administer God’s Holy sacraments faithfully.

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So, brother pastors, give some good and serious consideration to enrolling in DOXOLOGY in order to be refreshed in spirit, restored in your vocation, and prepared to give "spiritual care" to your flock. And faithful layfolk, know that this is a great way to support your pastor and to benefit from his renewed zeal to feed you on Christ the living Bread. Check out the DOXOLOGY website for much more information.

And just in case some are worried about the intersection of Theology and Psychology, know that the Psychological training does not at all trump the Theological. The *psychologist* who serves as one Executive Director won't let it. :-)

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18 Years and Counting

So yesterday marked my eighteenth anniversary of being ordained into the Office of the Holy Ministry. (I meant to post something about it yesterday, but got caught up doing several other things that kept me from the blog altogether.) This year, though, brought a most interesting way of observing said anniversary, namely, by *not* doing pastoral things as I was reflecting on my pastoral vocation. I guess a sabbatical leave will force one to do that.

While my usual December 16 anniversary routine was not there, the gravitas of the Office did not escape me. While I am able to take it easy this year (vs. busily - frantically? - preparing one last Advent midweek sermon and trying to look ahead to all of the Christ-Mass preparations), I still thank God for His most undeserved grace and mercy in placing me into His service in His Church, but most of all for redeeming me, the worst of sinners.

As part of my annual observance of being placed under orders ("ordained") to proclaim Christ and Him crucified and risen to save sinners, I like to look back on various quotes and explanations of who a pastor is and what he is supposed to do. So here are some of the words of wisdom that have guided me in the past and, I pray, will guide me in years to come.

As usual, Dr. Norman Nagel says it very well and quite succinctly: “Clergy are worth only what they have been put into the office for: not their own words, but Christ’s.” (“Externum Verbum: Testing Augustana 5 on the Doctrine of the Holy Ministry,” Lutheran Theological Journal, 30:101-110, Dec. 1996).

I also appreciate the way Martin Franzmann captures the purpose of the Office of the Holy Ministry in his hymn "Preach You the Word":

Preach you the Word and plant it home
To men who like or like it not,
The Word that shall endure and stand
When flow'rs and men shall be forgot.

We know how hard, O Lord, the task
Your servant bade us undertake:
To preach Your Word and never ask
What prideful profit it may make.

Preach you the Word and plant it home
And never faint; the Harvest Lord
Who gave the sower seed to sow
Will watch and tend His planted Word. (Lutheran Service Book, 586:1, 2, 6)

That last verse certainly takes on a new meaning when one is resting from pastoral duties, trusting that the Harvest Lord still takes care of His people in the congregation, right now quite apart from my all too feeble efforts.

And speaking of verses that take on something of a new perspective as one is on sabbatical leave, we pastors always need to stop and take a listen, even during such "busy times" as Advent and Christmas. After all, we have life only by the Word of God who came and took on our flesh to save us as well as our congregations. I pray that this prayer enfleshed in a hymn verse will also serve as the prayer of my many brothers in the Office:

Speak, O Lord, You servant listens,
Let Your Word to me come near;
Newborn life and spirit give me,
Let each promise still my fear.
Death's dread pow'r, its inward strife,
Wars against Your Word of life;
Fill me, Lord, with love's strong fervor
That I cling to You forever! (Lutheran Service Book, 589:1)

My favorite ordination anniversary quote, however, comes from Eugene Peterson as he expands on the meaning of the ordination vow by appealing to both Ezekiel (Scripture) and Odysseus (literature). Being "lashed to the mast" of our Lord's Gospel and Sacraments has often served as a sure anchor in the raging waters of various thoughts and emotions that well up within a pastor.

The definition that pastors start out with, given to us in our ordination, is that pastoral work is a ministry of word and sacrament.

Word.

But in the wreckage all words sound like “mere words.”

Sacrament.

But in the wreckage what difference can a little water, a piece of bread, a sip of wine make?

Yet century after century Christians continue to take certain persons in their communities, set them apart, and say, “We want you to be responsible for saying and acting among us what we believe about God and kingdom and gospel. We believe that the Holy Spirit is among us and within us. We believe that God’s Spirit continues to hover over the chaos of the world’s evil and our sin, shaping a new creation and new creatures. We believe that God is not a spectator in turn amused and alarmed at the wreckage of world history but a participant in it. We believe that everything, especially everything that looks like wreckage, is material that God is using to make a praising life. We believe all this, but we don’t see it. We see, like Ezekiel, dismembered skeletons whitened under a pitiless Babylonian sun. We see a lot of bones that once were laughing and dancing children, of adults who once made love and plans, of believers who once brought their doubts and sang their praises in church – and sinned. We don’t see the dancers or the lovers or the singers – at best we see only fleeting glimpses of them. What we see are bones. Dry bones. We see sin and judgment on the sin. That is what it looks like. It looked that way to Ezekiel; it looks that way to anyone with eyes to see and a brain to think; and it looks that way to us.

“But we believe something else. We believe in the coming together of these bones into connected, sinewed, muscled human beings who speak and sing and laugh and work and believe and bless their God. We believe that it happened the way Ezekiel preached it and we believe that it still happens. We believe it happened in Israel and that it happens in the church. We believe that we are part of the happening as we sing our praises, listen believingly to God’s word, receive the new life of Christ in the sacraments. We believe that the most significant thing that happens or can happen is that we are no longer dismembered but are remembered into the resurrection body of Christ.

“We need help in keeping our beliefs sharp and accurate and intact. We don’t trust ourselves – our emotions seduce us into infidelities. We know that we are launched on a difficult and dangerous act of faith, and that there are strong influences intent on diluting or destroying it. We want you to help us: be our pastor, a minister of word and sacrament, in the middle of this world’s life. Minister with word and sacrament to us in all the different parts and stages of our lives – in our work and play, with our children and our parents, at birth and death, in our celebrations and sorrows, on those days when morning breaks over us in a wash of sunshine, and those other days that are all drizzle. This isn’t the only task in the life of faith, but it is your task. We will find someone else to do the other important and essential tasks. This is yours: word and sacrament.

“One more thing: we are going to ordain you to this ministry and we want your vow that you will stick to it. This is not a temporary job assignment but a way of life that we need lived out in our community. We know that you are launched on the same difficult belief venture in the same dangerous world as we are. We know that your emotions are as fickle as ours, and that your mind can play the same tricks on you as ours. That is why we are going to ordain you and why we are going to exact a vow from you. We know that there are going to be days and months, maybe even years, when we won’t feel like we are believing anything and won’t want to hear it from you. And we know that there will be days and weeks and maybe even years when you won’t feel like saying it. It doesn’t matter. Do it. You are ordained to this ministry, vowed to it. There may be times when we come to you as a committee or delegation and demand that you tell us something else than what we are telling you now. Promise right now that you won’t give it to what we demand of you. You are not the minister of our changing desires, or our time-conditioned understanding of our needs, or our secularized hopes for something better. With these vows of ordination we are lashing you fast to the mast of word and sacrament so that you will be unable to respond to the siren voices. There are a lot of other things to be done in this wrecked world and we are going to be doing at least some of them, but if we don’t know the basic terms with which we are working, the foundational realities with which we are dealing – God, kingdom, gospel – we are going to end up living futile, fantasy lives. Your task is to keep telling the basic story, representing the presence of the Spirit, insisting on the priority of God, speaking the biblical words of command and promise and invitation.”

That, or something very much like that, is what I understand the church to say to the people whom it ordains to be its pastors (Eugene Peterson, Working the Angles: The Shape of Pastoral Integrity, pp. 22-25, italic original).

Sabbath Rest for Pastor and People

This little piece will come out in my congregation's December newsletter.

Sabbath Rest for Pastor and People

By the time you read this I will be starting a six-month sabbatical leave from pastoral duties at Hope. This time is intended to be a time of rest and rejuvenation. Yes, I will still remain your pastor, and yes, I will return after May 31, 2009. The purpose of this sabbatical leave is for me to return rejuvenated for longer service to Hope.

After Divine Services on November 9 the Board of Elders read a statement outlining my need for this sabbatical leave, and then that statement was sent to Hope member households. We are also including the statement in this issue of the Hope Lutheran, just in case you haven’t seen it yet.
In this column I want to focus on what a sabbatical leave is and what benefits we—pastor and congregation together—stand to receive. When I began learning in earnest about sabbatical leaves and their purpose, I came across a very helpful document from the Southeastern District of the LCMS. That document is called “Sabbatical Guidelines And Resources For Professional Church Workers.”

These “Sabbatical Guidelines” explain the purpose and rationale of a sabbatical leave in this prologue:

The word “sabbatical” is derived from “Sabbath.” Sabbath time is based on Genesis 2:1-4a in which God modeled and later required (Exodus 17:8-11) the setting aside of 1/7th of our time for re”creation” and restoration. For ancient Israel, Sabbath-keeping was a spiritual discipline that was designed to develop the Israelites’ ability to trust God. A person who kept the Sabbath exercised trust in God by abstaining from those activities that provided material resources. For one day each week, the Israelites would entrust themselves to God’s care rather than to their own ability to work. In short, Sabbath-keeping is a discipline of abstinence from those activities that make us more self-sufficient than God-sufficient.

Historically, in church and academia, the professionals were given a sabbatical every seventh year. The observation was that academic professors and clergy were so worn out after seven years of teaching and leading that they needed a time of rest, recovery, renewal, and reeducation in their field of endeavor. The assumptions were that it paid off for the professional person (avoiding breakdown) and that it paid off for the institution (re-energized and updated leadership). Professional church workers (i.e. Pastor, Deaconess, Director of Christian Education, School Administrator, etc.) need to recreate and restore what has been worn down by day-to-day encounters with stresses and strains of everyday life and ministry.

Nourishing one’s soul and regaining perspective requires a change of pace and place—a pilgrimage. Jesus provides us a good example to follow. He was always moving toward his Father—in prayer, in his teaching, in his travel and then toward the people in care and concern. And the apostles who walked with him were renewed day by day. That’s what sabbatical is about—a pilgrimage with Jesus toward our Heavenly Father. Journeying with Jesus we come to know that there is more to life than suffering or hopelessness. We are moving toward the climax and glory of what is to come. Like the early apostles, we can be recharged by walking with Jesus during an extended time of reflection, spiritual encounter, and community.

Sabbatical typically includes time for travel, rest, prayer, and experiencing different cultures. The best sabbaticals usually are more open-ended than rigid, allowing for the surprises, and possible new direction, that may come. Jesus’ forty days in the wilderness marked a turning point in his ministry. Moses’ time spent tending sheep helped change his perspective on his calling and life. David tended sheep and learned valuable lessons about God’s care and provision. Paul, struck down on the road to Damascus, disappeared into the desert of Arabia for three years, and emerged with a new vision. Therefore, sabbatical is a time to receive, to be nurtured, to reflect on your relationship with God and your own story, so that you can be renewed, refreshed, and revitalized for a life of service to others.

Shortly after this prologue, the “Sabbatical Guidelines” outline the benefits of a sabbatical leave. I was very encouraged to see how a sabbatical leave benefits not only the pastor who takes a sabbatical, but also the congregation. According to the “Guidelines,” here are the benefits for a congregation that grants a sabbatical to its pastor:

A. For the local congregation/school
1) An experienced professional church worker who returns from sabbatical with renewed energy and rediscovered zeal for ministry
2) An opportunity to develop congregational leadership and to come to a greater understanding of the congregation’s ministry by assuming some of the pastoral duties during the interim
3) An occasion for the congregation to reflect and assess their partnership with the professional church worker and ways to strengthen and improve ministry
4) An opportunity to show support and care for a beloved professional church worker and his/her family
5) A time for congregational members to reconsider their commitment and to assess their relationship to the life and witness of the congregation/school
6) Cost effective. When an experienced church worker takes a call and leaves, the congregation loses finances due to loss of momentum, expenses of interim church workers, potential loss of members during an interim period, cost of moving expenses of a new work, lost efficiency while new relationships develop, etc.

We want to be careful with #2, particularly the part about congregational leaders “assuming some of the pastoral duties.” According to Holy Scripture, pastoral duties are given to the pastors, while other tasks in the congregation’s work and life are given to others in the congregation. See Acts 6:1-6.

The “Guidelines” then outline these benefits for the pastor:

B. For the professional church worker
1) A needed break from long hours, high pressure, personal sacrifice, and the 24/7 nature of ministry
2) A time for prayer, rest, study, decision making [sic] and travel
3) A change of scenery and place which can help prevent burnout
4) An opportunity for the worker to discover the importance of doing what they do because of who they ARE rather than because of what they DO
5) The opportunity to develop greater self-awareness and spiritual depth
6) A time with family and friends, to renew and strengthen those relationships

These sound like great benefits for both congregation and pastor, and I look forward to all of us realizing such benefits.

Some have been asking, “Where will Pastor go to church?” Thank you for that concern for my being fed on the Gospel and Sacraments! I will not attend church here at Hope, but I will attend at some of our sister congregations in the area (I think there are a few of them ☺).

So for these next six months I will take “time to receive, to be nurtured, to reflect on [my] relationship with God and [my] own story, so that [I] can be renewed, refreshed, and revitalized for a life of service to others.” I covet your prayers during this time, and I promise that you will be continually in my prayers. I know that you are in good hands with Pastor Rosebrock and the others who will fill in for me. I also know that our Savior, the Lord of the Church, will continue to sustain us during this time of separation, and I am confident that He will use this time to strengthen our faith in Him and improve our life together in His Church.

God bless you, and the Lord be with you, dear brothers and sisters!

Homily - Trinity 27

Here's today's homily, for both the Last Sunday in the Church Year and my last Sunday in the pulpit before sabbatical leave (I'll preach yet at Thursday's Thanksgiving Day Matins service).

Looking for Fulfillment
Trinity 27 – Sunday of the Fulfillment
Isaiah 65:17-25; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 & Matthew 25:1-13

Christ is risen! [R: He is risen, indeed! Alleluia!] I’ll bet you weren’t expecting that, were you? But today gives us quite a mixture of messages—a little resurrection of Easter’s joy of new life in Jesus mixed with a healthy dose of eager anticipation for Jesus to come again in glory. After all, that’s when we’ll get to see and live the fulfillment of our Lord’s Easter victory over sin and death.

And there’s more. In the Gospel reading, we hear of the wise and foolish virgins and the oil of faith as they await the Bridegroom’s coming. Jesus says, “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” In the Epistle reading, we hear St. Paul’s exhortation on just how to wait for the Lord to “come like a thief in the night”—he calls us to be sober in our waiting and to put on the armor of faith and love and the hope of salvation yet to come. In the Old Testament reading, we hear God’s promise of what lies ahead: a “new heavens and new earth”; all joy, no more sadness; all life, no more death; all prosperity, no more need; all peace, no more conflict. And on top of all that, today is the last Sunday that I will be with you for the next six months. As you know, effective next Sunday I’ll be on sabbatical leave, a time for resting, reading, praying, and getting rejuvenated so that I can return and continue serving as your pastor.

How do all of these messages meld together to comfort and edify us today? On this “Sunday of the Fulfillment” we look forward to fulfillment, to full life, real life, restored life, in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Now, I’m going to stray a bit from one of my cardinal rules of preaching—I’m going to insert myself a bit this morning. No, I don’t like putting myself front and center in a sermon, let alone in the spotlight in general, but I also don’t want to ignore what’s on your mind on this last Sunday with you for a while.

As you heard two weeks ago, when the Elders announced my sabbatical leave, I’ve been wrestling with depression and burnout. I used to think that depression was mostly a matter of “having a bad day” or something. But I’ve learned that it comes as a result of a chemical imbalance in the brain. For someone with depression even the best of days and happiest of circumstances can seem shrouded in cloudy gloom. For me that gloom has been going by the name of “Apathy.” My motto has been: “Ah, what’s the point?” I know that’s not the “normal me,” but I can’t just shake it with a burst of willpower. And the burnout? One source explained burnout this way: “a state of physical, emotional and mental exhaustion marked by physical depletion and chronic fatigue, feelings of helplessness and hopelessness, and by development of negative self-concept and negative attitudes towards work, life and other people” (Oswald, 59). Yep, that’s been me.

Why do I focus on such things on this Last Sunday of the Church Year? No, not to get you to think, “Poor, Pastor.” Please don’t. Though I do appreciate all of your support, your well wishes, and especially your prayers. Instead, I bring this up because it illustrates the need we all have—the need for our Savior to return and “graciously take us from this valley of sorrow to Himself in heaven.” You see, there may not be a big “S” emblazoned on my clerical shirts – you know, for “Superpastor” – and I know you’ve never seen that big “S” – but we pastors like to think we can do anything and be everything for every one else—run faster than a speeding sermon deadline, be more powerful than a hectic schedule, and leap tall buildings of personal crises in a single bound. However, I, your pastor, am realizing just how finite and limited I am. Yes, we all need such reminders. Yes, we all need the Savior who loves us and strengthens us. Yes, we all need the Bridegroom to come and usher us into His “new heavens and new earth.” Oh, I am so looking forward to His return and to our new life with Him!

When we started making plans for this sabbatical leave, one brother pastor wrote some comforting words in an email. I will always appreciate and treasure them. He said, “The Day is not far off when Jesus will make all things new forever, including us. God grant you already now greater glimpses of the coming rest and joy. Meanwhile, we’ll keep on limping along together on this pilgrimage, sharing in the sufferings of Christ, finding life and strength in Him.” That’s the message of this Sunday of Fulfillment. We may be “limping along,” but we’re also looking forward to our Lord’s fulfillment of all of His promises, His new, full, real, restored life.

For now we’re all “limping along together on this pilgrimage.” St. Paul hints at this in our second reading. The world thinks there is “peace and security” in the things of the world—a new president soon to take office, a stock market rally here and there, or a profitable holiday shopping season. And we Christians too often go “limping along” in trying to find our peace and security in this fallen world. But, as St. Paul says, “sudden destruction will come upon them.” It’s the same thing Jesus had to tell His disciples once (Mk. 13:1-2). As He and they came out of the temple after worship, one disciple marveled at the wonderful buildings and the wonderful stones. But Jesus had to remind them—and us—not to put confidence in such things, because, after all, it will all come crashing down on the Last Day. So St. Paul urges us to “keep awake and be sober.” We are but pilgrims passing through this fallen world. “Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to Himself” (Phil. 3:20-21). I don’t know about you, but when I—fallen, frail, limited, and limping human being that I am—hear that, I can’t help but eagerly hope and pray for it.

That’s the oil in the lamps of the wise virgins in our Gospel reading—the oil of faith. No, not just any old generic faith. No, not just faith in any old thing that comes along. Notice what those virgins were waiting for—the coming of the Bridegroom. Those wise virgins had a plentiful supply of faith in the Son of God who loved them and gave Himself for them. You see, the Bridegroom has already demonstrated His great love for us, His bride, the Church. “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him” (1 Jn. 4:9). This Bridegroom, Jesus the Son of God, took on our human flesh—our flesh so shackled by any number of frailties and sicknesses and weaknesses, our flesh so prone to “limping along” in things such as depression and burnout and focusing on the fickle peace and security offered by the world. So the Son of the living God, our Lord Jesus, has restored our frail flesh. He, fully God and fully Man, also went to the cross to shed His blood for us. In His blood we find forgiveness and salvation from sin. In His death and resurrection we find healing, wholeness, and life—full life, real life, restored life—beginning now and realized in eternity. I don’t know about you, but I for one can’t wait until our Lord’s fulfillment, when He comes to take us into His wedding feast.

What will we find once we enter His marriage feast and the doors to this fallen world are shut behind us? Consider our first reading. What a picture! Former things, such as our sin and our weaknesses, will not be remembered. We, God’s Jerusalem, will “be glad and rejoice forever in that which [He creates].” Why? Because He rejoices in us and is glad in us, His people. That’s what Jesus’ incarnation, cross and empty grave tell us. It’s what His washing and His Meal deliver to us. Also, no more weeping, no more cries of distress. “He will wipe away every tear from [our] eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Rev. 21:4). No more infants dying young, no more old men coming to the end of their days. In other words, life, full life, real life, restored life. And just in case we think it might get boring, as if there would be nothing to do, remember this: “They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.” We’ll get to enjoy living like we’ve never enjoyed it before. God also says, “My chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands.” Yes, our working, our living, our growing will be such a joy—something that eludes us here and now, but something that will be very real.

But here’s something even better. God says, “Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear.” No longer will we speak, act, and live in ways contrary to God’s good will. Instead, we will be, as they say, “in tune”—perfectly in tune—with God the Holy Trinity, and He with us. It’s how we were created to live. It’s what Jesus came to restore through His life, death, and resurrection. It’s what we can look forward to with great anticipation. I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to it.

Hebrews 4:9 says, “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God.” That Sabbath rest comes in our Bridegroom Jesus Christ, and we will get to experience it fully on the Last Day. For now, even as we limp along, we rejoice in cross-won life and we look forward to His coming fulfillment of that life. Come to His Table, where He gives a foretaste of that feast to come. And while I must now leave you for a time, please remember that our Lord still keeps us together in His Body. After a time of “greater glimpses of the coming rest and joy,” I look forward to joining you again to look forward to our fulfillment in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.

A Sabbath Rest

Hebrews 4 has long been one of my favorite chapters in Scripture, particularly for the promise that "there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God" (Heb. 4:9). Just as God rested from His labors, says the writer to the Hebrews (and, yes, I like either St. Paul or Apollos for that honor), we too may look forward to a Sabbath rest. Of course, Hebrews 4 is speaking of the "rest" of our salvation and eternal life with the Holy Trinity.

However, I think this promised rest will take on more meaning these next six months as I will take a much-needed sabbatical leave - a.k.a. "sabbath rest" - from parish duties. Now that it's been publicized in my parish, I can speak of it here in this forum. Beginning 30 November 2008 I will take a sabbatical leave in order to rest, get rejuvenated, re-establish good study habits, and thus return to parish duties after 31 May 2009 with renewed vigor and focus.

You see, I must admit that I have been battling depression and burnout for the past couple of years. For those years I always thought, "I can shake this off," or "I can get re-focused," or other such self-motivational notions. But when you have that chemical imbalance in the brain that the doctors call "depression," such self-motivation just doesn't go very far or last very long. In fact, with bona fide depression (as opposed to having that gloomy day that hits everyone every once in a while), I have discovered firsthand that someone with depression can walk out the door first thing in the morning, greet a warm, bright, sunny, cloudless day, and it still seems as though the world is enveloped in a cool, overcast haze. My variety of depression has been marked, not by anxiety, but by apathy. Much of what I used to like and love (vocation, interests, hobbies, etc.) just hasn't mattered. "Ah, what's the point?" becomes one's motto with this kind of depression.

And then there's the burnout. I never thought of myself as a candidate for such a thing - never thought it would happen to me (You mean my clerical shirts aren't emblazoned with that big "S" for "Superpastor"? :-). But then, thanks to an article by Rev. Matt Harrison on sabbaticals, I decided to read Roy Oswald's book called Clergy Self-Care. As Oswald distilled several quotes on what burnout is, I'd swear the page in the book turned into a mirror reflecting the real me. Here's how Oswald described "burnout":

• Decreased energy—physically, the individual has difficulty keeping the pace.
• Decreased self-esteem—the individual feels a sense of personal failure related to work or vocation.
• Output exceeding input—the person has poured more and more of him/herself into a job or project, and the expected payoff or rewards are not forthcoming.
• Sense of helplessness, hopelessness, being trapped—the individual is unable to perceive alternate ways of functioning.
• Loss of idealism—the individual’s worldview has been shattered.
• Cynicism and negativism—the individual is down on self, others, the job, institutions, etc.
• Self-depletion—the individual’s resources to continue seem to be diminishing (Clergy Self-Care, p. 59).

Even though Oswald wrote and published those words back in 1991, I was sure that he must have been looking over my shoulder the past several months.

So, anyway, long story short, the past couple of months have been filled with seeing a counselor, seeing a doctor for the physical aspects (How about that, tests certainly can show imbalances and deficiencies in the body), discussing these matters with my congregation's elders, researching the whole notion of "sabbatical leave," and making plans for such a leave. (And that explains the paucity of posts here on the blog, a problem I hope to remedy real soon, perhaps with something of a "Sabbatical Journal" feature.) I must thank the Lord for giving me caring and understanding elders, as well as a very supportive congregation. This is new for all of us, but it's also an exciting time as we think of a renewed, refreshed relationship between pastor and people here at Hope.

What will I do for six months without the hustle and bustle of parish duties? I plan to spend Christmas - on Christmas - with my family in Oregon/Washington (something, of course, that we've not been able to do in 18 years of parish ministry). Reconnecting with family is supposed to be quite healing. I also plan to dive back into reading the Scriptures in their original languages, explore the new (for me) waters of early church fathers such as Ambrose, Chrysostom and others, sit in on a seminary class on patristic commentaries on John's Gospel, enroll in the "Doxology" program, and take some private retreats for prayer and study. Essentially, I'm looking forward to just being fed and "filled up" in order that I may return to my parish with renewed focus and zeal to serve the Lord and proclaim His Gospel.

And one final note before I share the statement that our Board of Elders has read and sent out. I've been amazed by the rapidity with which this news of my upcoming sabbatical has spread, and I've been especially surprised at how many people say, "Good for you!" But I must clarify one thing. The grapevine told me the other day that one report--from a branch on the grapevine most convinced of his "facts"--has put me "on disability." Well, to set the record straight: that's *not* true. I am not on disability; I will be on sabbatical. The goal is to rest and rejuvenate and thus avoid the whole disability thing. Please help the accurate details of my sabbatical story to course through the "grapevine."

Here's the statement that my Board of Elders has approved, has read after Divine Services a couple of Sundays ago, and has sent out to the whole congregation via postal mail:

Fellow Members of Hope:

For the past couple of months the Board of Elders has been discussing ways that our congregation takes care of our pastors. We call our pastors to preach, teach, give out the Sacraments, provide pastoral care to individuals and groups, and administer the day-to-day work of the congregation. This work often involves a seven-day-a-week schedule that sacrifices days off and time with family. Over time pastors need time for rest, renewal, and rejuvenation in order to keep serving the Church and our congregation.

Pastor Asburry has been serving the Church for 18 years, most of that time here at Hope, first as Associate Pastor and now as Senior Pastor. He prepares two sermons each week, one for Sunday and one for Wednesday. He teaches Bible classes, Adult Catechism classes, and a theology class at Hope School. He has also taught Youth Catechesis and Latin at the school. He regularly provides pastoral care to people who are shut-in and hospitalized; he prepares couples for marriage; performs Christian burials; and often provides pastoral counsel and deals with conflict resolution issues that arise. He carries out regular administrative duties and attends meetings of the Board of Elders, the Fiscal Board, the Board of Christian Education, and the Voters Assembly. In addition to this, for the past two years Pastor Asburry has been dealing with depression and burnout. Martin Luther once said something that describes what Pastor Asburry has been going through: “My head is like a dull knife. It just won’t cut anymore.”

The Board of Elders wants to take care of Pastor Asburry so that he can continue taking care of us with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Board has unanimously agreed to grant Pastor Asburry a sabbatical leave beginning November 30, 2008, and lasting until May 31, 2009. Sabbatical leaves flow out of the Days of Creation and are a good way for congregations to take care of their pastors. The 2007 LCMS Convention encourages congregations to take care of their pastors in this way and says, “A sabbatical is a time to receive, to be nurtured, and to reflect on one’s relationship with God so that one may be renewed, refreshed, and revitalized for a life of service to others” (Resolution 6-08). Pastor Asburry’s counselor has also recommended a sabbatical leave to deal with his depression and burnout. This sabbatical leave will give Pastor Asburry time to reflect on his work as a pastor, reestablish a regimen of daily study, reconnect with family, and rejuvenate himself to continue serving Hope Church and School. During this time he will enroll in the Doxology program for clergy study and renewal, attend several retreats and conferences, attend a class at Concordia Theological Seminary, and continue to see his counselor.

During Pastor’s sabbatical leave, Kantor Rosebrock will take care of the administrative duties at Hope, preach at Wednesday services, provide pastoral care for those in the hospital, and officiate at funerals and care for the grieving families. Pastor Preus will visit shut-ins and help with preaching. Pastor Egger and Pastor Maxwell will preside at Sunday Divine Services and, along with Pastor Fritsche and our seminary field education students, assist with preaching and teaching. This sabbatical leave will be financed by donations secured by the Board of Elders so that Pastor Asburry will continue to receive his regular salary and benefits and so that the congregation will not have extra expenses.

Please keep Pastor Asburry in your daily prayers during this sabbatical leave, especially that he may be rejuvenated and revitalized to serve Hope. Also, pray for those who take on extra duties to serve our congregation during this time. Finally, pray that God will use this time of sabbatical leave to enrich our life together as God’s people here at Hope.

Board of Elders
Approved, 3 November 2008
Read after Divine Services, 9 November 2008