Sabbatical Questions You Might Have

First, I am so grateful and humbled by the response I have received from all of you regarding my upcoming sabbatical.  You have blessed me with your words of encouragement.

I figured there would be questions that you might have that I would answer via my blog.  Here it goes:

1.  What will I be doing in May? 

I am away for 10 days starting on May 11.  Some of this is pre-arranged holidays and some of it is due to my responsibilities on the National Nominating Committee for the C&MA.  We will be interviewing candidates in Toronto to become our next denominational president.  I am pleased to be able to serve on this committee, and for those of you wondering, the District and National Office are covering all my travel expenses.

The rest of May will be about setting things up for while I am gone.  Mostly, who is responsible for what, establishing some communication lines and setting up the Summer Service Schedule.  I will also prepare my last pre-sabbatical sermon on May 27^th.

And of course, there is the usual stuff!

My Sabbatical officially begins on May 28^th, after our Council meeting.

2.  Who will be the Senior Pastor while I am gone?

I am the Senior Pastor while I am on sabbatical.  That doesn’t change.  No one staff person or Council member will be the de-facto ‘Senior Pastor’.  My responsibilities will be divided out between Council and Staff for the three months.

3.  What if something comes up, who should I contact?

Start with any of the pastoral staff of Jason, Heather or Jill.  They are all extremely capable and wise.  They are good pastors.  Their contact information is on the website.  At least one of them will always be around during the time I am away.

4.  Who will be preaching?

I will release a preaching schedule in the next week or so. 

5.  Can we contact you?  Can we hang out?

I’ve been asked this a lot in the initial 24 hours.  The answer is ‘yes’ and ‘no’.  Meaning, I’m all down with hanging out on the golf course, driving range, at the movie theatre, etc….  Just don’t tell me how the church offerings have been.  Or attendance for that matter.  J

That said, I will not be using my cell phone, nor on Facebook or accessing my email.  You’ll have to find me the same way you did in 1998.

6.  What will you be doing?

I will be doing three things while on Sabbatical:  Grow, rest and re-entry. 

Grow:  I will be taking a distance education class through Regent College on Old Testament Foundations.  I’m really excited about this.

I also plan on enhancing my spiritual disciplines.  I will be going to National Assembly in Winnipeg to elect our new president and vote on the ordination of women (I’ll vote ‘yes’ in case there was any question). 

If there is one question for this time it is: “in what areas of my life do I need to grow?”.  June and some of July will be about growth.

Rest:  There are a few books that I want to read that are for the ‘soul’.  We also hope to have a vacation.   It is during this time that we plan on going for ministry counseling.

July and some of August will be rest, and the question will be ‘God, what do want to say to me?’

Re-entry:  As my return for Sabbatical becomes imminent, I will then start to read books on leadership and discipleship, while reflecting on my leadership and how I can better lead the church.  In the last part of August and the first part of September, the question I will ask is ‘God, what do you want to say to me about Next?’

The hope of any sabbatical is that there are things to achieve, but also a lot of flexibility.   I believe that my District Coach, our Church Council, and my accountability team of Graham English & Sandy Isfeld have helped me develop a plan that reflects this.

7.  Where will you go to church?

Wherever we feel like that Sunday.  Seriously, we will visit a few churches during this time.  It’ll be good for us to sit in church as a family.  We’ve never done that.  I do have to be careful about this though.  Usually when I visit another church I see everything through the lens of Next.  I need to be able to just go and receive.

8.  Is there anything we can do for you, Sasha and your family?

I’ve been asked this a few times, and the answer is ‘yes, please pray’.  We covet and need your prayers.  That I will come back refreshed, re-loaded and have a revelation or two. You can pray that both Sasha and I would be renewed and that this would be a wonderful time for our family.  You can ask God for a spiritual covering over us.

Some have offered to bring meals over and other tangible acts of kindness.  As much as your generosity is appreciated, it isn’t necessary.  We are not physically unwell – my cooking is still enjoyed by my family on most nights.  However, you are free to bring baking whenever.  Who doesn’t want baking?!?

I hope that this answers most of your questions.  If not, please feel free to contact me or anyone on Church Council.  I’ll see you all on May 27th.

Blessings,

Dean