“The spiritual man puts the care of his soul before all else; and whoever diligently attends to his own affairs is ready to keep silence about others. You will never become interior and devout unless you refrain from criticism of others, and pay attention to yourself. If you are wholly intent on God and yourself, you will be little affected by anything outside this.” —Thomas á Kempis
My dear pastor, by the very nature of our position we are constantly giving out. We are ministering to the needs of others and it is physically, spiritually, emotionally and intellectually draining.
It’s a pretty simple statement: You cannot give what you do not have. You have physical, spiritual, emotional and intellectual limits.
So some simple questions for you to ponder this weekend:
- What are you doing to care for your own soul?
- How are you replenishing yourself?
- After you have emptied yourself in ministry, how are you being re-filled?
If you’d like to share some thoughts in the comments, please feel free to do so.
Craig T. Owens 