Making the Most of a Renewal and Study Break
So, it’s really going to happen! Your church board has okayed it and you’re actually going to get an extended time off for a study and renewal break. Now what?
Let me offer you some thoughts that have come out of my own experience.
Take the time to plan your time.
While you don’t have to lay out a minute-by-minute schedule, you would do well to give some consideration to the who, what, where, and when of your renewal and study break.
WHEN: I found that summer was ideal for an extended time away from the office. The church schedule tends to slow down making it a natural time for my personal schedule to slow down as well. You’ll have to determine the timeframe that works best for your family and church.
An ideal length of time for a study and renewal break is at least 3-4 weeks. I often tacked vacation time onto the break, starting my time away with a chance to play and reconnect with my family. It was a great way to start easing off the RPMs before heading into a more contemplative season.
WHERE: As you plan the various aspects of your break, consider the setting(s) that will be most conducive to achieving your desired outcome. You don’t have to be away from home for the entire break, but I do recommend getting away for at least a week – perhaps to a lake cottage or retreat center. A simple change of setting can do wonders.
WHO: Think about who will be with you during the different portions of your break. I strongly recommend you spend a significant amount of time alone. That stretch of solitude can be the most valuable time of your break.
In other aspects of your break, you may want to include time with family or friends – people who will pour life into you. You may also find that time with a spiritual director, counselor, or wise spiritual friend could be invaluable.
Be sure to include your spouse in the planning process. This honors them as a partner in it and could well allow for some great insights.
Speaking of your spouse, recognize the weight they will bear in your absence. How could you honor their efforts and even provide them with some assistance?
WHAT: Consider dividing up your break into three sections:
Personal renewal
Long-range planning
Sermon study
A study and renewal break allows you to focus on three goals: personal renewal, long-range planning, and sermon study.
Let’s take a deeper look at each of these.
Three goals of a study/renewal break.
1. Personal renewal.
When I went away for my first break, I had a briefcase full of Bible commentaries and sermon files. A wise friend told me to empty my briefcase of everything except my Bible and a journal.
While that frustrated me to no end (after all, I needed to “prove” the value of this time off by “producing”), he was right on. It was far more important for me to take in than to give out.
For this to happen, I needed to get away for a time of solitude and stillness. Fortunately, over the years, I had friends who gave me access to a cottage on a lake and a cabin up in Canada.
In those early days of my break, I committed the time to rest, relaxation, and renewal. I lingered in God’s presence with extended devotional times, journaling about where I’d been and what I’d become as a person as well as a pastor.
I fasted from all outside interference. No television, radio, or social media. I intentionally prioritized silence.
I took long walks. I spent time fishing (Yes, I actually had fun!). I dared to NOT plan or prepare anything but the meals I was going to eat.
After a few days of this, I could literally feel the easing of tension. The silt of my life began to settle, and I began to see God, myself, and my church more clearly.
In my renewal and study break the silt of my life began to settle, and I began to see God, myself, and my church more clearly.
It led to a new eagerness to step into the next phase of my break – which was…
2. Long-range planning.
One of the challenges of the pastorate is that the weekly expectations (sermon study, staff leadership, board meetings, etc.) and the daily demands (counseling appointments, funerals, weddings, hospital visits, etc.) gobble up all one’s time.
This can effectively disallow the need to consider the “big picture” of what is and what needs to be. Vision is relegated to what is immediately in front of you.
My study break allowed space and time to take the long view. I pondered larger issues such as, “Where have we been as a people in the past season? Where are we now? Where do we need to be?”
A study break allows space and time to take the long view. Ponder larger questions such as, “Where have we been as a people in the past season? Where are we now? Where do we need to be?”
I assessed the condition of the various ministries of the church and considered how those could be strengthened. I prayed about relational investments that needed to be made and congregational initiatives that needed to be launched.
Having taken time in the Word, asking God what He wanted to say to me about me, I now began to look for what He might want to say about us as a church. I took notes of these ideas as grist for discussion with my staff and board when I returned.
Having done this, I was more than ready to see how that would tie in with the next year of preaching. So, I then began to do…
3. Sermon study.
I started with reviewing where I sensed God wanted us to be focused in the next ministry year. I then tried to discern what part of God’s Word would get us there.
I brainstormed the upcoming preaching calendar and tried to figure out a realistic scope and sequence for the months ahead. (Download a free preaching calendar template HERE.)
My goal was to have at least the first quarter of the new church year laid out in some detail, with the succeeding quarters planned to a lesser degree.
While I wasn’t absolutely tied to this schedule, it proved to be invaluable to have a sense of general direction for the months ahead. And it made sermon planning a whole lot easier.
So, there you have it. That’s how my renewal/study breaks played out. Each year, I tweaked them a bit more to make them even better.
As you consider this template, you will of course need to figure out what works best for you. However, after using it for more than 20 years, I found it to be an effective way of making the most of my break. Hopefully, it will provide you with some ideas that will help you make the most of yours.
Oh…one more thing…upon your “reentry,” be sure to share with your congregation the benefit of your time off. Offer the ways God met you. Thank them for the privilege you were given. In short, let them experience the new vitality that is yours.
In doing that, I found my folks saying, “I can’t wait for your break…because you are a new man when you return.”
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