“Physician, Heal Thyself” (Refreshed)
“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” — Anonymous Thank you, “Anonymous” — because you have put words to exactly what I am doing and feeling. As a clergy life coach, I have the privilege of working with inspired, passionate leaders of faith who want […]
So, What Exactly IS a Life Coach? And How Is It Different From Everything Else You’re Already Doing
If you’ve ever thought about working with a life coach but hesitated because you weren’t sure how it’s different from seeing a therapist, meeting with a spiritual director, or grabbing coffee with a mentor — you’re not alone. I get this question often, and it’s a great one. The truth is, all of these relationships […]
2nd Chance God
I recently led the Bible Study portion of our Community VBS. Now in its 6th year, this ecumenical effort crosses denominational lines for the purpose of providing a fun week for community kids centered around our shared love of Jesus Christ. One day the kids and I explored the story of Jonah and the Ninevites. […]
The Stickler and the Hyper-Achiever: When Excellence Becomes a Burden You Were Never Meant to Carry
When Excellence Becomes a Burden You Were Never Meant to Carry You know that feeling when you finish a sermon and, before you’ve even shaken the last hand at the door, you’re already cataloguing everything that could have been better? The illustration that didn’t quite land. The point you rushed. The transition that felt clunky. […]
“Courage to Cross the Ocean” (Refreshed)
This time of year, graduation parties are happening all around us. Families are celebrating transitions — high school to college, college to career, one chapter closing and another beginning. There is joy and grief mixed together in those celebrations, often in the same breath. Parents are proud and a little heartbroken. Younger siblings are dreading […]
The Avoider Pastor
When ‘Keeping the Peace’ Is Actually Keeping You Stuck There’s a pastoral skill that looks a lot like wisdom. It’s the ability to sense when a conversation is going to be hard, and quietly… not have it. To delay the difficult email. To let a festering issue sit just one more week. To stay so […]
Good News Bearers
As an ordained pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America I have come to lament the word evangelical in our name. Too often it’s reputation precedes it as it has grown some unhelpful arms and legs in recent years. However, I am reminded of a simple definition I once learned for the word evangelical from […]
The Pastor in Transition
Discernment, New Calls & What Comes Next Transition is one of the most spiritually and emotionally complex seasons a pastor can enter. Whether you’re considering a new call, stepping into retirement, feeling restless in your current place, or wondering if God might be redirecting you entirely — discernment requires more than a prayer. It requires […]
BYOB
Every pastor’s letter of call could read BYOB: bring your own baggage. All of us lug into our calls the stuff of life we have collected along the way which informs our practiced theology and our self-talk and the expectations we place on ourselves, often unrealistic, unattainable and unsustainable. We imagine what a pastor SHOULD […]
The Pleaser Pastor: When Caring Turns into Chronic Over-Functioning
I remember when I was working for LSS, I approached a pastor and asked if I could get some time on his calendar to share the work LSS was doing. He angrily pulled out his little red calendar, rifled through its pages and said, “it’s full, my calendar is full, unless you want to come […]
