Do you feel like you are trying to manage all the chaos of the world? Are there things in your life and ministry that are challenging and cause you anxiety? Are you searching for answers?

Whether we face problems that need to be solved or tensions that need to be managed there are many places where we experience trouble.

• Marriage
• Relationships
• Ministry and church related challenges
• Our schedule
• Physical health 
• Emotional health
• Finances
• Kids/family

There are things that contribute to our lack of peace:

• Messages from the world
• Expectations of others
• Taking on more things to do for God than our relationship with God can handle
• Busyness
• Fears
• Wrestling with challenges and being unsure of what to do
• Coping by grasping and clinging to other people or circumstances...even a feeling.

There is chaos around us and chaos within us. Here is where we can related to David as he expresses this shared experience in Psalm 63:

My inner self thirsts for you, my flesh longs and...

Are you having trouble figuring out what healthy rhythms and boundaries would work for you? Most pastors and leaders I talk with know that they need to put boundaries in place but they are just not sure what will work. And not knowing is what’s keeping them stuck in the unhealthy patterns of leadership.

How do you gain clarity so that you can make progress?

1. Ask God. God, what do you want for me? What’s your vision, God? What do I need to focus on? What do I need to make time for?
2. Write down what is most important to you in this season. What relationships are most important in the months ahead? What events are important? What roles, responsibilities do you need to make time for? What parts of yourself need time/attention/nurturing?
3. Start small. Pick one thing but start. We tend to try and do much too quickly. Do one thing, but do it! We tend to think about things over and over again. We'll talk with colleagues and friends, we'll meditate on what we...

Do you like to plan? 

I know I do. It makes me feel accomplished. Productive. In control. Planning eases my anxiety because I know what to expect. Plan the work then work the plan, right?

The problem is we rarely actually work the plan. We spend time, energy, resources getting everything we need to create a long term plan...we plan the work, but rarely do we work the plan.

God may have given you a vision, a word, a calling, and unless God tells you otherwise, that doesn’t change...but how we live it out does. Things change. We don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow.

I am already hearing the anxieties from many leaders about what will happen this fall. What will be possible in a world where we are living with COVID-19? And we spend a lot of time thinking, wondering, worrying, and trying to plan.

Here's the thing: We don’t know what will happen tomorrow. 

This week I started to read the book Win the Day, by Mark Batterson. I only got through...

Let's celebrate!

This is episode 100 of the Women in Ministry United Podcast!

From the launch in March 2019, the journey has been filled with twists and turns. If you've been with me for a lengthy period of time, you know that this began as the Giving Up Normal Podcast where we focused on giving up the normal things that are hurting your soul so that you could live as the person God created you to be. 

While that heartbeat continues, God's call for my leadership got more specific and as my ministry focused on helping women in ministry break free from the cycles of busyness and overwhelm and create healthy rhythms and boundaries...the name of the podcast changed to simply, The Women in Ministry United Podcast!

Today, as we celebrate the 100th episode, I share with you 4 lessons that I've learned from you, the community, as you share your experience creating and maintaining healthy rhythms and boundaries in your life and leadership. Exposing these common realities...

Compassion fatigue is a reality for many caregivers in ministry. In this episode I sit down with Laura Howe from Hope Made Strong as she shares her insights and strategies on how you can tell if compassion fatigue is affecting you and what you can do about it.

Laura defines compassion fatigue as "the physical and mental erosion, the wearing down, of your hope, empathy, and compassion." It is something that develops overtime and can compromise our compassion for others as well as ourselves.

Compassion fatigue is not a sin, failure, or weakness. It is a result of being a caring person and doing good work. It shows up when we haven't had the opportunity to refuel.

Resources from Laura

10 Signs Your Experiencing Compassion Fatigue

7 Keys to Build Resilience

More About Laura:

Laura loves to equip you and your ministry team as you support and care for others in your community. Founder of Hope Made Strong and the Church Mental Health Summit Laura is a mental health clinician and community...

There are three rhythms that everyone in ministry should have: A rhythm of rest, rhythm of retreat, and a rhythm of review. Today we are going to talk more about the rhythm of review.

Effective ministry leaders have a regular rhythm of review...weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly. That may seem like a lot of reviewing! But you’d be surprised how transformative this practice is and it doesn’t take a particularly long time to do. Although you could spend hours if you’d like, setting aside just 30-45 minutes of intentional time to look back and remember what you committed to, what God did, what God said, reviewing how it went, and looking forward, seeking God on how He wants you to spend your time...it’s a game changer. It really helps you draw closer to God as you constantly seek Him and ask Him to speak to  you.

Last week we had a chance to look back, remember, thank God for all He has done and remember the things He’s asked of us that we...

How good are you at remembering? I'm sure you have a plan or strategy to make sure you remember all your "to-do's" for various things in life and ministry but this isn't the kind of remembering I'm talking about.

How good are you remembering the Lord...what He has done, what He has spoken, how He has provided and protected?

Throughout the scriptures we are constantly told to remember because we are people who are quick to forget.

It is important to reflect and remember.

This episode is being released the last Thursday of June which means the first half of the year is over, so it is the perfect time to do a mid-year review! Why? We don’t want to live by chance. We want to be strategic and intentional about following the path God has set out for us. Many of us take time to reflect and align ourselves to the movement of God at the beginning of the year which is great, but then we end up waiting until the entire year has passed before we check in with God about the things...

Have you considered quitting ministry?

If you have, you’re not alone. There are many pastors and ministry leaders who are considering whether or not it is time to go.

A 2013 study from the Schaefer Institute reported that 1700 pastors leave the ministry each month, citing depression, burnout, or being overworked as the primary reasons. In 2019 a summary of surveys from Fuller Institute, Barna and Pastoral Care Inc. showed that 1500 clergy leave pastoral ministry every month. And just last week I saw a church leadership expert take a poll asking, “have you considered quitting in the last 14 months?” And a resounding 77% answered, “yes!”

Thousands of pastors around the United States and around the world are ready to quit.

If you are one of those people, what should you do?

• Remember that God loves you apart from what you do for Him, so if you quit, He will still love you completely!!!
• Sometimes when you feel like you want to quit, you really don't want...

Do you struggle with embracing your limits? Do you feel as though you are losing yourself on this journey of leadership? In our final episode [originally #20] of the BEST OF SERIES, I share my conversation with Pastor and friend Ashley Engle.

During our time together we talked about the challenges of leadership and what we’d tell our younger selves to remember along the journey. It was a refreshing, healthy dialog about our need to embrace the gift of limits and the importance of giving ourselves permission to live in a way that honors how God has made us.

There are so many things that Ashely shared that speak to me and my personal experience...and that's why I believe this episode has been listened to more than any other...because Ashley's struggle is our struggle. She gave voice to what we are going through. She was able to put into words what many of us could not or have been afraid to say.

Connect with Jen

If you need help creating a pace of ministry that accepts your...

Do you feel like things are out of your control? Have you told yourself change will never come?

We are in the middle of our BEST OF SERIES where we are replaying the most popular episodes of the podcast. Although this episode [45] originally aired last year, many things have remained the same.

When the world seems out of control, it is tempting to believe that you've lost all control. However, that is simply not true. You have control over so many things! In this episode you are challenged to broaden your perspective and given strategies to exercise the control that God has given you.