A "SABBATICAL"?

"... he departed again into a mountain himself alone." (from John 6:15)

My friend, the Rev. Jim Ennis (who is an Associate Pastor at Grace Chapel in Lexington, MA and was pastor of the Framingham Church of the Nazarene for many years) finds it amazing that I've been an Assemblies of God minister for around 28 years and I've been pastor of First Assembly of God of Framingham for 21 years, but I've never taken a "sabbatical".  Several times Jim and others have "bugged" me to take a sabbatical.  The word "sabbatical" comes from the number 7 (as in the Jewish "Sabbath"/day of rest). 

Some  colleges and universities allow their professors to take a sabbatical every seven years or so.  Some churches allow their ministers to take a sabbatical every seven years or so.  After Jim Ennis had been pastoring the Church of the Nazarene in Framingham for over 9 years, he requested (and was allowed) a three month sabbatical.   He spent much of that time completely alone in a cabin in the Maine woods. 

"Sabbaticals" are very new things for Evangelical and Pentecostal pastors and churches, although in most "mainline" denominations, they've been happening for years.  I don't know if I would ever truly take a sabbatical.  I can see that sometimes sabbaticals create more problems than they solve.  Many church Boards don't like them because 50% of pastors who take sabbaticals end up resigning their churches within 6 months of coming back from the sabbatical.  (In fact, Jim Ennis DID that!)  I am not sure if I have ever heard of an Assemblies of God minister taking a sabbatical.  In fact, just the whole concept of  "interim pastors" (that is, those who specialize in temporarily pastoring a church during the time it's seeking a new permanent pastor) is brand new in the Assemblies of God, although Baptists, Congregationalists and others have had interim pastors for years.

Why am I writing about all this? Well, I'm not seriously thinking of taking a sabbatical any time in 2008 (in case any of my church people are wondering about it) but I took today as a "mental health day".  No, I'm not about to crack up or anythign like that :-) !But I've felt like I was "going on fumes" for the past two weeks or so.  In a small church, sometimes you wear SO many hats and you feel like you just don't get a break.  My late father was a workaholic, and I've known many clergy colleagues who are workaholics.  When I as young, if anything, I was kind of lazy and had a "well if it doesn't get done, who cares?" kind of attitude.  Somewhere around 35 that really began changing in me, and by 40 I was a full-fledged workaholic.  THAT has actually surprised me because I NEVER thought I would be a workaholic like my father!

Well, here I am at the Boston Public Library on my "mental health day" and I just HAD to get on the computer and send off an e-mail to the Board dealing with a church administration issue for this weekend!

Am I crazy?!

Is Jim Ennis right about those "sabbaticals"?!