Reflection - When We Feel Broken

08/27/20 • 8 min

Sometimes events occur in our lives that sweep through, rippling through the foundations of our life like tectonic ruptures, leaving us feeling off-kilter, a little broken. Illness, uncertainty, transition, betrayal, job loss...

It makes sense that we feel unbalanced when change rolls over us like a storm. We might feel minimized by the events that overwhelm us.

So...how do we move forward when we feel broken?

Sometimes we can move forward by standing still. The moon remains implacable in the sky above us as it moves over us during both night and day. And even as, little by little the moon becomes minimized as it traces its path through the sky, so too the moon begins to rebuild a little bit more of itself day by day. Until the moon once again reclaims its magnificent beautiful self.

And so, too, will you.

Links:

Covid-19: Resilient Educator Toolkit https://resilienteducator.com/covid19/ dedicated to the support of teachers and educators, students, parents, and families.

“Too Many Pastors Are Falling on Their Own Swords”, by Jakob Topper https://baptistnews.com/article/too-many-pastors-are-falling-on-their-own-swords/

“Healthcare Worker Burnout & Self-Care” by Dr. Alisa Burpee, a Seattle-based clinical psychologist. https://www.providence.org/news/uf/625195886 (last accessed

HelpGuide, a nonprofit mental health and wellness website, provides evidence-based information for a broad spectrum of issues, concerns, and circumstances: https://www.helpguide.org/articles/anxiety/dealing-with-uncertainty.htm

National Association of Social Workers provides some good resources & strategies for self-care during the Coronavirus Pandemic: https://www.socialworkers.org/Practice/Infectious-Diseases/Coronavirus/Self-Care-During-the-Coronavirus-Pandemic

Many thanks to Ministering to Ministers, who produces and supports this podcast. Please check out the resources available through this fantastic foundation:

Ministering to Ministers

Ministering to Ministers Resources: Forced Termination

Ministering to Ministers: The Problem

Ministering to Ministers Resources: Books

Ministering to Ministers Wellness Retreats

Music for this episode has been legally purchased from AudioJungle. License available upon request

It makes sense that we feel unbalanced when change rolls over us like a storm. We might feel minimized by the events that overwhelm us.

So...how do we move forward when we feel broken?

And so, too, will you.

Links:

Covid-19: Resilient Educator Toolkit https://resilienteducator.com/covid19/ dedicated to the support of teachers and educators, students, parents, and families.

“Too Many Pastors Are Falling on Their Own Swords”, by Jakob Topper https://baptistnews.com/article/too-many-pastors-are-falling-on-their-own-swords/

“Healthcare Worker Burnout & Self-Care” by Dr. Alisa Burpee, a Seattle-based clinical psychologist. https://www.providence.org/news/uf/625195886 (last accessed

Many thanks to Ministering to Ministers, who produces and supports this podcast. Please check out the resources available through this fantastic foundation:

Ministering to Ministers

Ministering to Ministers Resources: Forced Termination

Ministering to Ministers: The Problem

Ministering to Ministers Resources: Books

Ministering to Ministers Wellness Retreats

Music for this episode has been legally purchased from AudioJungle. License available upon request

Previous Episode

Pastor Skip Irby: Terribly Normal: Grief, the Pandemic, and Fatigue

Kathrin sits down with Pastor Skip to explore the suddenly changed landscape in which we find ourselves during the Covid-19 pandemic days. In this unprecedented time that feels unmoored, unfamiliar, and sometimes unending, we discuss aspects of the world that have become “terribly normal” and how lamentations might support us in these times, the difference between hope and optimism, and Skip reminds us of the ways in which we are all connected.

As always, Pastor Skip recalls the importance of giving voice to our own personal story, giving three important ingredients that can help us in these times of tremendous upheaval and uncertain change. Including Yogi Berra, Carl Dudley, D. Elton Trueblood, the Psalmist, the Chicago Mass Choir, and even the Rolling Stones, Kathrin and Skip’s conversation ranges throughout the wide landscape of this life in this pandemic.

There are some wonderful, supportive resources online. Here are a few:

Psalms of Lament by Amy Weems and Walter Bruggeman. If you’re interested in this book, please consider purchasing this book from a minority owned book seller. Here are a few lists to help you in your search:

Condè Nast Traveler: 55 Black Owned Bookstores You Can Shop Online: https://www.cntraveler.com/story/black-owned-bookstores,
African American Literature Book Club: https://aalbc.com/bookstores/list.php
Literary Hub: https://lithub.com/you-can-order-today-from-these-black-owned-independent-bookstores/

July 27, 2009 performance of “You Can’t Hurry God” by Chicago Mass Choir

Erin Gravley and her sister, Grace, created a website called i dream of covid, which is dedicated to the collection and sharing of the wide variety of dreams people experience during this unprecedented time. Here’s the NPR interview with the creators.

The Shiyr Poets: How Long (Psalm 13) and On This Troubled Day (Psalm 10)

“A public [person in service], though they necessarily available at many times, must learn to hide. If they are always available, they’re not worth enough when they are available.” D. Elton Trueblood

Here’s a treasure trove of unique wisdom from Yogi Berra.

Check out these two other Pastor Skip Irby conversations on the Friends for the Journey:

Choosing your second or third response:

Next Episode

Pastor AbbyLynn Haskell - Hope Changes

Kathrin shares a truly delightful conversation about the many patterns and shapes that make up the mosaic of AbbyLynn Haskell: sacred storyteller, pastor, boat captain, and retreat coordinator, a person of faith, explorer of the oceans in the world and within the imagination. With good humor, the gift of story, and a wealth of hard-won wisdom, Abby reminds us that, even as we each grow and change, hope changes as well.

While it might be tempting to say that Abby wears a lot of hats, it might be more fitting to say that Abby allows the light of insight and inspiration to shine through the many windows of her faith and creativity. It was an absolutely delightful conversation to share, filled with laughter. I hope you join us.

Links:

AbbyLynn Haskell:

Broad Reach Ministries: https://broadreachministries.com/
Acton Congregational Church UCC: https://sites.google.com/site/actonmaineucc/
Maine School of Ministry: https://www.maineucc.org/ministries/mesom/#1587758099544-b66ba32b-22e1
Curious about Sacred Storytelling? https://broadreachministries.com/sacred-storytelling
Broad Reach Sailing: https://broadreachsailing.us/
Jonathan Boyd – Tenor: http://jonathanboyd-tenor.com/

Additional links related to AbbyLynn Haskell’s conversation:

More about the cognitive and biochemical changes of storytelling: Gallo, Carmine. “Stories literally put our brain waves in sync.” Quartz at Work, Last accessed May 12, 2020. https://qz.com/work/1298571/stories-literally-put-our-brain-waves-in-sync/
“The magical science of storytelling” David JP Phillips; TEDxStockholm: Last accessed May 12, 2020: TEDxStockholm on YouTube

Some supportive resources related to learning disabilities and neurodiversity, including Auditory Processing Disorder, which Abby mentions in this episode:

Understood.Org,
Learning Disability Association of America (LDA), and
Attention Deficit Disorder Association (ADDA).
Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD)

Here’s a great book about Dyslexia that Abby recommends: The Gift of Dyslexia: Why Some of the Smartest People Can’t Read...and How They Can Learn, by Ronald D. Davis and Eldon M. Braun. As Abby describes it, “this book lifts up the benefits of being blessed with a learning challenge.”

Many thanks to Ministering to Ministers, who