When the Yoke Doesn’t Feel Easy Anymore (Featuring Bill Dogterom)

About this episode

Bryan Rouanzoin and Bill Dogterom discuss the challenges of pastoral weariness and the importance of soul care.

What if our weariness as pastors isn’t a sign of failure, but rather a sign that we’re measuring success by the wrong metric? In this episode, Bryan Rouanzoin and Bill Dogterom seek to reconcile Jesus’ promise of an “easy yoke” with the pervasive weariness so many pastors experience today. Bill shares how his own weariness sparked a life-changing shift from a church-growth mindset to a formation mindset. He and Bryan discuss the three spiritual practices that help “keep the yoke easy,” why he intentionally distinguishes his personal spirituality from his professional spirituality, and how he recognizes which parts of his soul need care. Bill Dogterom is professor emeritus in the School of Theology & Ministry at Vanguard University. He has served in pastoral ministry for more than 25 years, including as senior pastor of Foothill Christian Center in California. He has also been involved in pastoral ministry in Canada and the United States. To find more resources and experiences tailored just for you—the pastor—visit practicingtheway.org/pastor. This podcast and its episodes are free, thanks to the generosity of The Circle and other givers. You can learn more about The Circle or…

People in this episode

Host: Bryan Rouanzoin

Guest: Bill Dogterom

Topics covered

• soul care
• pastoral weariness
• spiritual practices
• church growth
• formation mindset

Keywords

• pastoral ministry
• spirituality
• easy yoke
• soul care
• church growth mindset

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Vanguard University

Books & works: Sabbath As Resistance: Saying No to the Culture of Now, The Sabbath, Working the Angles: The Shape of Pastoral Integrity

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