As pastors, we can’t allow negative, anxious thoughts to overwhelm us — at least not for long. After all, we serve a big, amazing God who is greater than all our troubles. When we focus on everything that’s wrong around us, we can become defeated. But if we keep our focus on the things that are going right, we might … Read More
Charting a New Course: What to Do When You Don’t Respond Well to Stress
Let’s face it: none of us are always going to respond correctly, especially when a challenging situation first hits. So let’s talk briefly about what to do when we’ve had time to reflect and realize that we could have done things better. Here are three ideas about what to do if you find you’ve started handling a difficulty in an … Read More
Good Stress vs. Bad Stress: Understanding the Difference
Yes, there is such a thing as good stress. Small amounts of good stress keep you focused and motivated. You grow through certain levels of stress. The stress gravity exerts on you makes your bones denser and your muscles stronger. When you exercise, your endurance rises as a result of the stress you impose on yourself. When you decide to … Read More
Free Live Webcast – 6 Differences Between Average Pastors and Renegade Pastors
You’re invited to sign up now for a brand new FREE Zoom training this Tuesday where you’ll discover 6 quick ways to overcome the pull of “average” — and pastor with a healthier, more impactful approach to ministry. It’s a 60-minute training that is timely to meet today’s challenges! I suggest you reserve your seat ASAP — space is limited to just … Read More
How Are You Sleeping? 5 Questions to Ask Yourself
Even when you understand the importance of prioritizing sleep, gauging whether we are getting enough can still be difficult. We are so conditioned to get by on too little sleep that we are not always the best judges of whether our needs are being met. To begin determining if you are getting enough sleep, ask yourself these questions: How much … Read More
Thinking Clearly: 3 Reasons Stress Triggers Can Go Undetected
Finding clarity in the midst of a crisis is not an easy task. But it’s vital that we do it. We need to take time to become clear about the real stressors we face–often those stressors aren’t readily apparent. They may even deceive us at first. This happens for a number of reasons: Sometimes we are too close to a … Read More
The Call to Prepare
The below excerpt is from my book The Renegade Pastor: Abandoning Average in Your Life and Ministry. The call to ministry is the call to prepare — and preparation is an ongoing process. You will never learn all there is to be learned about any subject; you’ll never reach the pinnacle point in any area. And who would want to? … Read More
Write Down Your Stress
The below excerpt is from my book The Renegade Pastor’s Guide to Managing the Stress of Ministry. I (Richard) read a book many years ago that I believe was entitled Strictly Personal and Confidential: The Letters Harry Truman Never Mailed. Apparently, the former president had a habit of calling in his secretary to dictate angry letters to reporters, congressmen, and even cabinet … Read More
The Way God Works
The below excerpt is from my book The Renegade Pastor’s Guide to Managing the Stress of Ministry. You can see something good come out of stressful situations. We don’t want to come across as preachers here (even though we are). But it might be helpful to remind ourselves that God is in the business of bringing good out of even the … Read More
Managing Stress Monday: The Benefits of Praise
The below excerpt is from my book The Renegade Pastor’s Guide to Managing the Stress of Ministry. Life comes at us like a hurricane sometimes, and it’s difficult to remember the very things that will help us most. If you find that you are in this position, and you need to make praise a bigger part of your life, then simply … Read More