3. ‘One of the dangers of
ministry is that we
endlessly meet the needs
of others without giving
time to some of the
important things that
God has called us to.’
(p21)
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
4. Biblical overview...
Genesis 1:5; 1:8; 1:13; 1:19; 1:23; 1:31
‘It was evening, it was morning – Day 1; ...it was
evening, it was morning – Day 2...’
God’s days started with rest.
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
5. Gen 2:2-4
By the seventh day
God had finished his work.
On the seventh day
he rested from all his work.
God blessed the seventh day.
He made it a Holy Day
Because on that day he rested from his
work,
all the creating God had done.
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
6. Day 7 – what did God actually do?
How did God rest on day 7?
What sorts of things did He do?
Did He sit there all day doing nothing?
Did he sit there all day working?
If not...what did He do?
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
7. • cease work or movement in order to relax, sleep, or
recover strength.
• synonyms: relax, take a rest, ease up/off, let up, slow
down, pause, have/take a break, unbend, repose, laze,
idle, loaf, do nothing, take time off, slack off, unwind,
recharge one's batteries, be at leisure, take it easy, sit
back, sit down, stand down, lounge, luxuriate, loll,
slump, flop, put one's feet up, lie down, go to bed,
have/take a nap, nap, catnap, doze, have/take a siesta,
drowse, sleep; de-stress, take five, have/take a breather,
veg out, snooze, snatch forty winks, get some shut-eye;
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
Rest…
8. Exodus 18:13-27
• Moses and
the Father-
in-law
talk....
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
What lessons can we learn from this passage about Personal Growth, Support and
Pastoral Care?
9. Lessons from the Father-in-law...
• ‘Why do you sit alone?’ (v14)
• ‘From morning to evening...’ (v14) – compare
Genesis 1: ‘It was evening, it was morning...’
• ‘Because the people come to me to inquire of
God...’ (v15)
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
10. • ‘What you are doing is not good. You will
surely wear yourself out, both you and these
people with you. For the task is too heavy for
you; you cannot do it alone. Now listen to me.
I will give you counsel, and God be with you!’
(v17-19)
– Do those around us feel as if they can offer us
advice? Do we listen to it?
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
11. The wisdom of our parents...
• ‘So Moses listened to his
father-in-law and did all
that he had said.’
• ‘Then Moses let his father-
in-law depart, and he went
off to his own country.’
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
12. Jesus
• From your knowledge of Jesus, how did he
support himself, develop his own personal
growth, and what boundaries did he put in
place? Try and give Biblical examples.
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
13. Jesus...fully God yet fully human...
• He could still only be in one place at one time.
• He still needed to spend time on his own with
his father (Matt 14:23, Mark 6:45, Luke 6:12)
• He still needed a core group of friends ‘to do
life with’ (John 6:3, Matthew 17:13)
• He enjoyed a good party (John 2)
• He wept and allowed himself to grieve when
he was upset (John 11:35)
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
14. What does it look like in reality?
What things have we already put in place for our
own personal growth, support and pastoral
care?
What has worked for us as individuals which we
could recommend to others?
What areas do we struggle with?
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
15. Patrick Raegan
• Plan your time off in advance and then protect it (write days / evenings off
in your diary and treat them like any other important appointment that
can’t be broken).
• Be accountable. Have someone safe you can be vulnerable with, let off
steam to and who will check up on how you’re doing. Give them
permission to challenge you in this area.
• Be disciplined and choose not to check emails late at night/on your day
off.
• It may be helpful to see a counsellor, especially if you already feel burnt
out.
• Study what the Bible has to say about rest to remind yourself of its
importance and to keep guilt at resting away.
• Find times when it is just you and God, without any agenda or anyone else
to worry about.
• Book in a retreat once a term.
• Taken from http://youthwork-magazine.co.uk/main/article/burnout
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
16. Thoughts to take home...
• What can we do this week to ensure we create
time to rest on a daily basis?
• Just because we can, should we?
• How can we ensure that we continue to grow
as disciples of Christ?
Personal growth, support &
pastoral care
Editor's Notes
Calling – ‘Feed my Sheep’ – Aurora – way of feeding youth workers so that they can then go on and feed others – but amazing how many other things crop up when I’ve booked time in to plan Aurora sessions.
God’s days started with rest
Pretend you’re God…you’ve just created the earth in the past 6 days…what are you going to do on day of rest? You’ve just created the earth…so don’t tell me that you’re going to spend all day in bed watching TV and playing on your iPhone…
Recover Strength: We often spend our strength and then relax to recover it. God, however, rested so he could recover his strength so that he could spend it…
The Synonyms related to rest can come across in either a positive or negative light. Negative: laze, idle, loaf, slack off, lounge, loll, slump, flop, veg out…
Positive: take time off, recharge one’s batteries, be at leisure, take a breather… The terms we use in relation to the term ‘Rest’ can define whether we see it in a positive or a negative light.
Why do you plan your youth work alone?
Did Moses have a pride issue? How do you react when people come to you for help? Just because someone’s come to you with a problem, doesn’t mean that you’re the best person to deal with it. We are allowed to say no and not feel guilty about it…because we know that God’s called us to do something, and therefore has called us not to do other things. And if they’re coming to you to inquire of God, then maybe that gives you some tips as to what to look at within your next few sessions.
We live in such an individualistic society and so often that rubs off on us, and we think that we have to do it by ourselves. But the reality is that all successful people have others around them supporting them. Aurora is based upon a partnership between three organisations – YMCA, Diocese and Cliff College.
Jethro left to allow Moses to take on board his advice, and then stand on his own two feet. It’s important that we’re allowed to the do the same…to take on board other people’s advice, and then to stand on our own two feet…and also for us to do the same with those under us. If we have leaders below us, it’s important that we firstly pass on our own wisdom to then, but then also to depart and allow them to stand on their own two feet…
‘Boundaries’ – can be seen as a negative thing – but we’re humans, and I think sometimes we do need to put boundaries in place. E.g. – Teresa and I when dating didn’t want to have sex before we got married, so we put boundaries in place to make sure we didn’t. I try and leave my phone downstairs when we go to bed so I’m not tempted to think about work overnight. Studying for masters – should put a boundary in place that I’ll turn my phone off and not check my work or personal e-mails whilst studying!
