1. Yes this is a new format. I'll be sending this out weekly, with more info in a shorter form. The points will be not only things I'm writing and doing, but also quotes and links to other stuff I think you'll find helpful. If you like what you see here, you should follow me on Facebook, and send this email along to your friends.

2. Ruth Haley Barton on the need for spiritual leaders to retreat regularly:  "One of the occupational hazards for those of us in ministry is that it can become hard to distinguish between the times when we are ‘on’ and working for God and times when we can just be with God for our own soul’s sake....

"When we repress what is real in our lives and just keep soldiering on, we get weary from holding it in and eventually it leaks out in ways that are damaging to ourselves and to others. Times of extended retreat give us a chance to come home to ourselves in God’s presence and to be with God with what is true about us in utter privacy. This is important for us and for those we serve....

"On retreat there is time and space to attend to what is real in our own lives—to celebrate the joys, grieve the losses, shed tears, sit with the questions, feel anger, attend to loneliness—and allow God to be with us in those places. These are not times for problem solving because not everything can be solved. On retreat we rest ourselves in God and wait on him to do what is needed and we return to the battle with fresh energy and keen insight.”
- Ruth Hayley Barton

3. Renew Retreat for Christian Leaders - coming January 2017. Now is the time to register and make plans to attend the first annual Renew Retreat for Christian Leaders. This is a time for leaders of spiritual communities, therapists, church staff people, board members, and/or leaders of non-profit groups to come together in a glorious setting for spiritual renewal and re-tooling. The retreat will be held from January 15-20, and the retreat cost includes the opportunity to stay in a luxury condo for a full week. Click here for more.

4. Seven Bible verses for when you feel overwhelmed. Meditate on these verses. Read them and mull them over at night when you go to bed. 

5.  Three things Spiritual Leaders Must Do if They Want to Last. This is not meant to be an exhaustive list; in fact, it's a fairly brief article. It articulates three things that are vitally important -- and often overlooked -- for the long-term health and vitality of leaders. Hint: (a) end denial of your vulnerability (b) end patterns of isolation (c) take ownership of, and be very deliberate about, your own self-care ... even if it causes other people to judge you (and it probably will). Read article here.