What To Do When You Need a Change Pastoral Care for Pastors

“What do you want to talk about today?” I asked “Charles” at the beginning of our coaching session. I normally begin sessions with a question like this that helps the coachee begin to think about what is on their mind and would be most helpful for them to discuss.
“I don’t really have a topic,” Charles said. He paused, then continued. “Well, maybe we can talk about our church’s new leadership transition plan.” Charles proceeded to talk freely about this new plan, without interruption, for the next twenty-five minutes. He shared his concerns, his frustrations, his hopes, the relational tension that was creeping into the leadership team, and his overall dissatisfaction with where his five-year pastorate is with this church.
It was clear that Charles was stressed out and that this stress was beginning to overtake him.
We talked for the next twenty minutes or so, letting Charles breathe and reflect. It wasn’t the time to coach him toward some hard goals and action steps. Instead, I simply recommended that he take time for himself each day. I encouraged him to block out the first 45 minutes after lunch and to take a walk through the neighbourhood where his church was. 
I checked in with him after a week. Although he was still frustrated and stressed, he felt immensely better about things and believed he was turning a corner, mentally, that was going to help him adjust and be in a better place to handle the leadership transition.
Practicing self-care is always the right move for a pastor. Making sure to practice self-care before it becomes too late is the difficult move.
I wrote about how to know when you need to make a change last week.
This week, I want to share with you four self-care practices that will help you create space to reflect and recharge, whether you see a storm coming or are in the middle of one. 
These are habits that I have learned to practice throughout my career in ministry. They have been immensely practical and helpful to me, as well as to others I have shared them with.
* Take a long walk
The first practice is simple: Take a long walk. This may seem odd to you, but I suggest that this is the absolute best thing you can do for yourself. Pastors end up sitting a lot. We sit at a desk to study for and write lessons; we sit at a table to visit with congregants; we sit in the car as we drive to and from appointments. We even sit in a chair when we pray or read our Bibles. 
Pastors need to move more. I believe that so much sitting takes away from our creativity. And though it seems counterintuitive, I also believe that when pastors decide they are in a rut and need to pray or read their Bibles more, that very rut will work against their desire to spend more time in prayer and the Word. 
Getting out of the office and going for a walk will invigorate you. Moving will help your body release tension that has settled from all your sitting. Walking, without looking at a book or listening to a podcast, will help you think. Being away from the office while you think will bring creativity into your thoughts and will create space for you to listen more closely to God. 
* Take steps to lead yourself well
A second recommendation is to be proactive with your self-care. Burnout happens when pastors allow events around them to create a downward spiral. The path to burnout begins when pastors are not grounded or anchored because they have let themselves become overwhelmed by external things: the demands of others, artificially imposed deadlines, the stress of the job.
Pastors must be deliberate in establishing self-care habits. These habits are spiritual disciplines. In these habits, pastors create space for God, where God may speak and the pastor can listen. 
Something as seemingly small as giving the first fifteen minutes in your office to a prayer practice will pay tremendous dividends for helping to ground you. Reading a prayer before you leave at the end of the day will create room for God to re