A Sabbatical #3: Dos & Don'ts

In order for your sabbatical to truly be a time when you can rest from your regular ministry and go "offline", you will need to take action to avoid anything that will cause your mind to come back "online".

Here is a little list of practical Dos and Don'ts which I found helped me to guard the protective space that I was seeking to create for myself.

1. Don't fill up your empty calendar with other ministry opportunities: You are not taking a break from your current ministry so that you can fill your calendar with other ministry. Even when others think that you should say yes because you apparently now have more free time than they do, kindly refuse and do not feel the need to justify your stance.
2. Do take a sabbatical from all other regular activities and commitments: If you are involved with other organizations, churches, committees, local schools… let them know that you are on sabbatical and that they should not plan on your involvement during this time. This helps prevent the previous point and increases the likelihood of you achieving your sabbatical goals.
3. Don't feel guilty: You are entitled to this break. You have prayed and thought about it for a long time. It has been approved by your boss. Don't worry about what others are doing or about what might be going wrong without you. Right now, it's not your problem. In fact they may well be getting on very nicely without you.
4. Don't check your ministry email: Instead, set up an automatic out-of-office message indicating the date of your return and a contact email for the person who is covering for you. With one exception during the first week, I did not open my ministry email account the whole 12 weeks I was off. I knew I had to be radical in this because even catching a glimpse of the subject line of an email, would be enough to start the wheels of speculation turning in my mind. What do they want? Are they waiting on a reply? Is it urgent? It would plague my thinking so much that the only way to find relief would be to open the email, read it and perhaps reply. If you reply to some emails, you will be signalling to your colleagues that you are not really off-line and that you are willing to do work. You will later regret that you didn't take the opportunity to go "off-line" when you had it. Who knows how long it will be before you have it again?
5. Do keep ministry and private emails separate: For several years now, I have used two main email address – one for ministry and one for non-ministry. While the ministry one was disabled on all my digital devices, I could continue to receive email from family and friends as normal.
6. Do use an old phone (or change the SIM card):  If you find that you still get phone calls on your mobile phone, consider turning it off and leaving a sabbatical message on the answering machine. Alternatively, leave the phone with your wife or other family member and ask them to receive calls for you. They can explain that you are on sabbatical and give the caller options. The person screening the calls can then decide if it is urgent enough to share with you. If going away for the day, take a phone with you which contains an old pay-as-you-go SIM card and a number that only your wife knows (she can reach you if she needs to but no one else can). 
7. Do have regular and extended times of Bible reading and prayer but don't use your ministry prayer calendars: At first this may appear to be unspiritual and selfish but allow me to explain. In order to 'switch off" you need to stop thinking about the problems, people, places… that may have contributed to you needing a sabbatical in the first place. Spend lots of time in prayer but don't trigger your mind to entertain destructive thought patterns.
8. Do spend as much time outdoors as you can: I was glad to have my sabbatical during the summer months. The benefits of sunlight for the body and mind have been well documented. Fresh air, physical exercise, scenic views... all contribute to you relaxing and getting to the place where you can hear God's voice.
9. Do journal your thoughts: Going into a sabbatical, you will have many issues you are wrestling with in your mind. Your thoughts will be muddled. One of the big frustrations is not being able to accurately and sufficiently articulate what the problems are, let alone suggest solutions. Always keep a pen and moleskin nearby. At different times I felt an excitement rush over me as I formulated a sentence in my mind and rushed to grab a pen and moleskin to record it before it was forgotten. Then in the preceding days I could modify the thought, reword it and express it in a more satisfying way.
10. Don't be upset when you learn of decisions that were made during your absence: You have temporarily delegated responsibilities and you have made it clear that you do not wish to be disturbed. For your colleagues, the busyness of ministry goes on and some things can't wait until you come back. Don't get upset, learn to let go, relax and make the most of your sabbatical. 

In Sabbatical #4 I will share about the books I read and the podcasts I listened to.