Stress Busters

It’s that time of year…you and your husband survived the marathon youth ministry summer, and now he’s busy getting ready for the fall youth group kickoff, recruiting volunteers, and planning the calendar. Exciting times, but they can be pretty exhausting! Often you don’t even realize it when you’re in the middle. When we arrived at our current youth ministry, they told us that one of the previous youth minister’s used to get really sick every October. “Makes sense,” said my husband. You go through the crazy end of the year stuff and graduation celebrations in May, dash all over during summer doing camps, conferences, and mission trips, then push hard to get your fall line-up in place and all the new programs kicked off. When all of that is up and running, the adrenaline and other stress hormones finally drain out of your system, and all the viruses you’ve gathered in your continual contact with humanity throw a party in your worn out body. (For wives, it can hit at Christmas, when you finally arrive at your own mother’s home and let your guard down…Jennifer and I compared notes and figured out we’ve been coughing/sneezing (or worse) through quite a few holidays between the two of us!)

So, how about figuring out how to give yourself, and the guy you love, a few mini-breaks now, to avoid the October and/or Christmas let down later. Here are a few ideas we have, feel free to comment with your own!

-- Take a nature break – you and God and some quiet, pretty place. You don’t have to go to the mountains or ocean to find this place, either; try nearby parks, lakes, or a spot under a tree or a blanket under the stars.
-- Get some exercise – sounds cliché, but a good brisk walk can clear your head as well as your body. Just don’t overdo it if you haven’t been doing this for a while! If you have kids, get them in a stroller or on a bike and go!
-- Read for fun – this is one of my personal favorites—finding something light and uplifting, or a good mystery. Of course, if reading isn’t your thing, it may not work. Some people prefer audio books.
-- Shut out the world and listen to some good music for a few minutes – whatever puts a smile on your face, something loud and rocking from your youth (anybody remember Steve Taylor and his crazy lyrics?) or classical, jazz, or a worship CD.
-- Watch a comedy movie or a Christian comic – yes, there are still some good, clean, funny movies out there to watch, rent or buy!
-- Swap babysitting with someone in your church and have a fun date night.
-- Look for a new prayer partner. Even if you already have one, sometimes it is great to talk to a new person and pray together for your family and ministry.
-- Of course, when all else fails, there is always chocolate! :)

Send us your ideas for other great stress busters!

Conference Reflections

We spent the past week with some of our high school youth group at Christ in Youth conference. One of the most influential members of the group has been in heaven for almost 2½ years now. Sonya died in a car accident, but her life and death have and continue to speak volumes for her Savior. It is remarkable to me that her voice is almost louder to us now than it was 2½ years ago. The second day of conference focused on “injury” and the lesson that morning included a writing by a high school student who had also lost a friend in a wreck. It really resonated with all of us. It was good to share our injury with God and one another (along with other injuries) and know we were not alone. That was the theme of the whole week: ONES, because we were never meant to be alone.

Later in the week, we were totally enjoying an exuberant worship time, and I thought to myself, “Sonya would’ve really loved this.” Then I immediately thought, “Dummy, Sonya is probably enjoying worship ten times, no, a thousand times more wonderful than this right now! With our Jesus!” And I had to smile. This is just a great practice session…there is something so amazing about being in a big group all gathered to praise God, to search His Word together, to learn and grow and seek His will for our future. Together. Not alone.