One Thing I Wished I Knew Before our Sabbatical

Newark, New Jersey

With one hour left till boarding, we were taking care of last minute business before truly turning off and checking out for our Sabbatical. Chris was finalizing the hire of a new Restoration Project staff member, cupping his mouth over the phone to be heard over the loudspeaker. I was accepting final edits for a writing project. He hung up the call. I hit send. And we gathered our girls to head to the gate.

They were tired. School had ended the day before. While they signed yearbooks, I had madly cleaned the house to prepare for Airbnb guests to arrive the afternoon we departed. We dropped off our dog with friends in the school parking lot and made sure Chris' Dad had scheduled help for his ailing Mom. 

By the time we boarded, we were exhausted. The frenzy of the last few days were but the last bits of crazy following months (years?) of a fast paced life. We limped into our Sabbatical and it took weeks to unwind.

Had we only known the most important thing to do BEFORE you leave for Sabbatical is to prepare. Not just the aging parents, pet sitter, and office details, but to prepare your heart and soul to enter into a spiritual space. 

That's why we coach ministry leaders that  restorative sabbaticals begin long before you're on the plane. We're talking about this on our podcast series this month: preparing the decision makers in your life so that you can take a Sabbatical, preparing yourself so that you don't limp into one, and preparing your people with a behind the scene look at ours.

Join us wherever you get podcasts at The Walking With Podcast.