When you were learning what it meant to follow Jesus as His disciple did anyone talk to you about the reality of burnout? Were you encouraged or taught to lead in a way that prevents burnout so you can do what you’re called to do for the long haul? Burnout is prevalent but it is also preventable.

And yet...

...this is a subject typically avoided, especially in conversations around our Christian vocation and the life of the church. In today’s episode, I am going to share with you the things no one told me about burnout so you can live and lead with a greater awareness of this all too common threat.

Definition of Burnout

"Burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress. It occurs when you feel overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to meet constant demands. As the stress continues, you begin to lose the interest and motivation that led you to take on a certain role in the first place.”

...

How can you actually make margin in your life and leadership? What’s the actual process? How do you figure out what you need and what should you do once you have the vision? In this episode I share with you the margin maker framework to take the guesswork out of it.

The Margin Maker Framework

Caring for your SOUL: Ruth Haley Barton describes the soul as the truest part of you. Your relationship with God, your understanding of your whole self, and focusing on who you are becoming are all aspects of the soul and help you define your priorities. 

Reconnecting with your CALLING: Your God-given passions and desires help shape the role you play in the body of Christ. Reconnecting to the call God has placed on your life helps you rediscover your priorities.

Shifting your MINDSET: We make decisions based on what we believe. Oftentimes we are stuck because of fears, lies, and limiting beliefs. When we go beneath the surface we can see that there are...

Robert Swenson defines margin as, "the space between our load and our limits." The problem is...we are constantly pushing our limits and it eventually takes a toll on our soul, our family, and the people and places we lead.

5 Guiding Principles to Making Margin

• You are loved by God without limits or conditions (not based on what you do).
• Jesus came so that you can have life and life to the fullest (you are not the exception).
• You were made for margin.
• Who you are becoming matters more than what you are doing.
• The degree of your intentionality and how purposeful you are in your decision-making will determine the degree of margin you will have.
  

More Things We Covered

• The epidemic of busyness.
• The role of the pandemic.
• What we have in common with rubber bands.
• The margin in the life of Jesus

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Welcome to the first episode of the Margin Maker podcast!

The intention of these first few episodes is to give you a vision for what you can expect on this journey. If you like what you hear, make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you will get notified each time a new episode goes live.

Who is this show for and what is it designed to do?

This show is specifically designed to help Christian women leaders slow down the pace and create healthy boundaries so that you can have time for what matters most in both your personal life and your leadership. The fact is many of us don’t think much about making margin until we start to feel like things are going off the rails a bit. And thankfully God gives us plenty of warning signs that we are extending ourselves beyond our limits and not living and leading as the women He has created us to be. 

Red Flags That You Need Margin

• You are worn out from trying to do it all. 
• You feel the fatigue of the relentless pace.
• You find...

Introducing the Margin Maker podcast. Here is a glimpse of what the podcast is about. Subscribe now on your favorite platform so you won't miss when the first episode drops in March!

This is the final episode of the Women in Ministry United Podcast.

If you have skipped over the last few episodes you are probably thinking, "What in the world???"  I apologize if it feels sudden. I debated long and hard how long I could or should keep going and how much runway I should give us as this part of the journey comes to an end. Sometimes a long goodbye isn’t the best thing and what’s awesome is this isn’t goodbye, it’s a new beginning.

In this final episode of the Women in Ministry United Podcast, I share with you ways you can get resources and stay connected as well as some details about the new Margin Maker podcast.

If you want to make sure you stay up to date on all that is happening in the community as well as launch details for the Margin Maker podcast and other community events make sure to sign up below.

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“Good is the enemy of great. And that is one of the key reasons why we have so little that becomes great.”   -Jim Collins

What a powerful quote. And I know this to be true in my own experience. I try to hold on and do everything. I don't want to let go of good things that are valuable and serving people. But sometimes have to let go of good in order to open our hands to receive the new thing God is calling us to.

Last week, I shared with you the difficult decision to quit something good, something I love, in order to make room for something great. If you haven't already listened to that episode, you can HERE.

*SPOILER ALERT...I have been invited by God to launch a new podcast and I've said yes to that new thing...which means I am bringing this show to an end.

When I first started to sense this I came up with every reason in the world why I should keep the WMU podcast going and just do both projects. And in today's episode I share...

I’m sure you’ve heard the saying that the good can become the enemy of the best and I have found that to be true. Maybe you have too. I find it especially to be true as God is inviting me to something new.

Sometimes I find that in order for me to take a hold of something new, I need to let go of another thing. And that’s hard. I want to be able to do it all. But I have learned over the years that when I try and do more I become less…

I become less like Jesus…less patient, less wise, less compassionate, less loving. I spend less time with God and more time doing. I become less effective and more stressed and strained by the demands and expectations.  

Sometimes we have to choose to stop the good so we can take hold of what is better.

This is where I find myself today.

In this episode I share with you a decision I've made to give up what's good and it impacts you, the listeners of the Women in Ministry United...

Do you keep track of the things God is saying and revealing to you? What verses of scripture just keep coming up? What words, phrases, or concepts rise to the surface? What dreams has He planted? What types of invitations has He given to you?

Finding a way to record our spiritual insights helps us grow in intimacy with Jesus. But our growth doesn't stop there. Sharing our insights with others helps us grow in community and is a way that God often speaks to others. 

My pastor always said, "God comes to people through people." How many times has someone shared what God is teaching them and you've thought to yourself...I've been thinking of that same thing! That is a common way that God works and speaks!

In today's episode of the podcast, I am sharing spiritual insights that God has been teaching me over the last year. You may find that God speaks directly to you through what He is teaching me.

Here's a brief list of what I share:

• I reap what I sow....

 In today’s show I am interviewing my friend Jill McCormick as we talk about grace for the try-hard girl, especially when we sense we are in a season of change.

Anyone feel like a try-hard girl? You know, the one who loves Jesus and her people so she tries hard to get it all done, to not disappoint, to do everything well, to always be there, to help fix the problems and right the wrongs? That try-hard girl lives in me and I don’t know about you but the idea of living in the freedom of God’s grace is something I desperately need. And I believe you will find so many things you can personally relate to and take away from my conversation with Jill that will fill your soul with grace.

Some Things We Covered

• Who is the try-hard girl?
• Understanding how we can extend grace to ourselves.
• Accepting we are human beings, not productivity machines.
• Why it is so hard to admit that something needs to change?
• Ideas about how to create space to be with Jesus...