Stress | Carey Nieuwhof in NZ

Dear Pastors

Note: There is absolutely NO connection between stress and Carey.

How stressed are you feeling today Pastor? How stressed are you feeling overall…..as in every day? It’s an interesting thing to note that the word stress doesn’t appear in scripture at all and even the idea of stress is hardly referenced. Yet we now know that (bad) stress is killing us. We also know that bad stress is an unfortunate by-product of a fast paced and modern lifestyle in all affluent countries. I too have been a sufferer in earlier days. In fact truth be known I have a condition that I need to watch out for that they think ‘stress’ was a contributing factor. I think something has gone terribly wrong in our world.

Of course there is good stress sometimes referred to in psychological circles as ‘eustress’. Who wouldn’t want some of that? Eustress gives us motivation to get out of bed and do stuff. It helps us adapt to adverse factors in our environment. Actually, we need eustress to survive. Not to say anything of its importance in the world of physics and engineering.

But it is bad stress or chronic stress (often referred to as distress) that I want to write about this week.

Here’s a good working definition. Long term or chronic stress is when you are dealing with circumstances on a continuous basis that are bigger than what your inner resources can cope with. In other words you are in a continual state of bad stress when you are in over your head. You are feeling overwhelmed, overstretched, besieged and burdened with life’s circumstances. You feel like you are drowning.

Living like this for too long will almost always lead to emotional/mental distress and pain that can lead to other psychological illnesses. We also know now that your immune system can be compromised putting you at greater risk of physical illness as well.

So I have a few questions for you Pastor.

• Are you coping with all the demands your role has placed on you?
• How are you coping with the ‘weight’ of responsibility that goes with your job these days?
• How are you coping with the many disappointments in your role?
• How are you coping with a ‘no growth’ environment? Etc etc.

I am worried that unhealthy levels of stress are becoming the ‘new normal’ in the pastorate. What I mean is that we could be so used to living in the intolerable stress zone that we are getting used to it including the attendant side effects like poor sleep, poor eating patterns, insufficient rest and recreation, sexual dysfunction and on and on. Not to say anything about day to day functioning and decision making that will be below par. Without being overly dramatic I see signs of it everywhere.

Next week I will share what I have discovered as an effective antidote(s) and also a couple of literature suggestions on this topic.

Carey and Toni Nieuwhof are with us next week. I am so looking forward to spending time with these guys. Carey’s blogs and podcasts may well be the most read and listened to by Pastors from all denominational backgrounds in NZ. We will be in Hamilton, Christchurch, Wellington and Dunedin. All information and registration details are here. It’s definitely not too late to register. It’s going to be a fabulous day of learning, inspiration and challenge as we listen to another leader whose been there done that and along the way has gathered such important insights that we can all benefit from hearing and learning from.

Finally, at The Peoples Church, episode 10 of ‘Soul Matters’ is Part 3 in the series entitled The Utopia Complex in a message called ‘Body Perfect’. If you have young people in your home they might find this talk especially helpful.

Blessings

Alan

Alan Vink is currently the Executive Director for LeadershipWorx. Prior to this role he has been the Executive Director of Willow Creek Association NZ (WillowNZ), a Baptist pastor (23 years), Bible College teacher, and church consultant.