In my first year of ministry, our speaker for our theological conference was a pastor named Kirby Byron Jones. He had written a book entitled, Morning BREW: A Divine Power Drink for your Soul. Rev. Jones came to our conference to share his book but the real essence of his talk was about self-care.
Rev. Jones experienced a mental breakdown in the middle of one of his worship services after years of ministry and intense educational work. It was a typical Sunday morning and Rev. Jones stood in front of his congregation proclaiming the message for the day. He had just started to preach and was warming up and moving into the text when suddenly he stopped. He became overwhelmed by everything in life and found he could not go on. Try as he may, he had no words. He could not even formulate a sentence. His retelling of the story was hilarious as he recounted how members of the congregation spoke up with encouraging words at first and then finally one woman called out, “Lord, help him!” “Lord, help him!” What an honest cry. Rev. Jones laughed as he explained this is not what we EVER want to hear during one of our sermons, but it was the truth in the moment. What he needed was help. Help from God. Help from his congregation. Help from anyone. He needed rest. He needed time away to take care of himself and to deal with his anxiety and burn out.
When I looked at Rev. Jones, I saw a healthy, vibrant, funny, articulate man with a great sense of who God is. This was true. He was all those things and he was also someone, who was courageous, vulnerable, and someone who struggled with his mental health. His vulnerability and honesty stayed with me to this day. He spoke about mental health before it was okay to do it, or at least before there was a movement to “make it okay.” Rev. Jones made it okay by just being who he was. I remember having deep admiration for him. I also wondered how things had gotten so out of hand for him that he had experienced this breakdown. As a newbie into ministry at the time and a young person in general that aspect was beyond my comprehension.
I have come a long way, since then, in my understanding of mental health. I realize that Rev. Jones’s story is not unique, that many of us experienced the same kind of struggles and that mental health is something that we all need to tend to no matter what our profession. I also know there is so much more to learn about mental health and how to care for ourselves and others. I do know that telling our stories of mental health is an important thing to do. Each story is unique and in sharing our tales we can grow closer to each other in being vulnerable and caring for one another.
One of the things that Rev. Jones encouraged for all of us was to practice good self-care and to engage in regular devotions. His book Morning BREW lays out a very simple way to do this, using the letters of the word BREW. It is so simple that I remember it by heart.
B: Be still and know that I am God. Begin your morning with a time of silence and allowing yourself to listen to God.
R: Receive God’s love. Allow yourself a moment to bask in God’s abundant love by imagining it raining down on you.
E: Embrace yourself for who you are. Allow yourself a moment to see the best of who you are instead of all the short comings that we so often like to focus on.
W: Welcome the day. End your devotion by greeting the day with delight and wonder.[1]
I have used this simple formula for devotions on and off throughout my years of ministry. Sometimes I use it on walks in my neighborhood, other times I sit and intentionally work through the steps in my own home. There is not a right or wrong way to do devotions. If you miss a day, this is not a big deal either, start again tomorrow.
I do know at such a time as this, that I need devotions more than ever. I am so thankful for the many people writing devotions for our website providing a voice and faithful perspective for each day. I need to be still. I need to receive God’s love. I need to embrace my best true self and to welcome each day for whatever it brings. The truth is some days are tough. Most days are long. Our time of isolation and social distancing is taking its toll on our families and on our own mental health. And yet, we are not alone in this journey. It is not a sign of weakness to need help. Instead asking for help is courageous and often the best thing you can do for yourself and for your family.
My prayer for all of you is that you feel enveloped by the love of God, that you can take time to nourish your body, mind and spirit and that if you are hurting today that you will reach out and ask for help. Please know that you can reach out to me or anyone on our mental health team and we will do what we can to guide and care for you.
Blessings,
Pastor Joanna Mitchell
[1] Jones, Kirby Byron, Morning BREW: A Divine Power Drink for your Soul, Augsburg book, Mpls, 2005.
