People who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.
— Rob Siltanen
The what and the why
Regular professional supervision is vital for anyone working in a ministry or chaplaincy setting. These roles come with significant challenges that just aren’t present in other settings, and it’s important to work them through with someone who gets it. Ben has lived experience, both as a pastor–in a large church, a small church and a home church–and as a chaplain in a highschool. If you want to keep your passion alive and stay effective for many years, regular supervision with someone outside of your ministry context is one of the most important ways to ensure you keep on course.
How professional supervision can help
Professional supervision can you support you with:
- Staying effective, empowered and encouraged in your role
- Staying healthy as a person, caring for your wellbeing
- Avoiding burnout and compassion fatigue, or managing these where it has already occurred (healing may also require individual counselling)
- Negotiating the tricky ethical issues that can arise in ministry work
- Staying in ministry for the long term
- Debriefing after significant events
- Talking through personal issues, such as relationship breakups, significant losses, difficult emotions
- Setting boundaries
- Dealing with the unique challenges of the role, such as isolation and loneliness, working with volunteers, raising funds, role ambiguity, the pressure to appear perfect
- Growing and maintaining a healthy balance between work/ministry and personal life
- Questions about theology, deconstruction and reconstruction
Many of these circumstances would be difficult or impossible to discuss within your ministry context, but at the same time can be critical to your life and ministry. This is where professional supervision can be a life-saver. I know personally what burnout feels like, and I don’t want anyone else to have to experience it. The cost to both your ministry and your personal life is too high. If you’re working as a chaplain or ministry leader, please seek regular outside support so you can stay healthy and effective. – Ben
Professional supervision FAQs
How often should I get professional supervision?
This will depend on the nature and demands of your role. Many people book a session about every three months (or once a term) to keep them on track when things are relatively ‘normal,’ and then book in more frequent sessions at times when challenging events are occurring or the demands are higher. You will need to decide what is necessary for your own role.
Who pays for professional supervision?
This is a good question to ask your organisation or board! If professional supervision is vital to your own health and that of your ministry (which it is), there is a good case for it being part of the ministry budget.
Have more questions? Check the main FAQs page, or connect with me using the contact form.
