2027 Sabbatical

This sabbatical is not a response to burnout or crisis — it's a routine rest, taken long before anything turns into one. Much of the discipline I run my day-to-day life by is a set of coping strategies for the demands of ministry, not the way my mind is naturally wired; I'm far more wired toward spontaneity and taking life as it comes. Those schedule and planning disciplines are like the backpack I carry when I hike: good, helpful, and necessary for a safe and enjoyable journey — but over time they get heavy, and I need a break from carrying them. "Setting it Down" is that moment: setting the pack of responsibilities down without loading on a new set of goals and expectations to replace it.

What I'm hoping for on the other side of that rest is renewal, not just a pause. My hope is to spend these three months less goal-focused and more receptive to curiosity, spontaneity, and simply enjoying being alive in God's world. I believe that setting the pack down will give me the space to clearly see who I am in this season, and what brings me joy apart from what the church, the conference, the community, or even my own internalized expectations of a pastor demand of me. I'll be processing this with my longtime Spiritual Director and Therapist — noticing myself and God as I set down the pastoral, administrative, and leadership responsibilities I normally carry, and experiencing myself in God's presence apart from them. That experience, on its own, is the goal; anything it produces beyond that would be icing on the cake.

- For Me: A chance to set down responsibility and spend unhurried time resting and playing with God, family, and friends, so that I can open up enough to imagine possibilities.

- For My Family: A chance to worship alongside friends we don't normally get to worship with, and to be together without being watched by our church community.

- For Valley Chapel: A chance to find out whether the church can integrate new people, as well as form and multiply disciples on its own initiative, without the pastor driving it. Secondarily, we hope for this to be a redeeming experience for Valley Chapel. The last Sabbatical plan led to fear that Sabbaticals mean a pastor leaves, and we aim for this to show that is not the case.