A prayer for marking the start of renewal leave with your congregation
Lots of ministers I know are planning for renewal leave. This makes me so happy! I celebrate alongside the clergy who are getting a break from their rewarding yet demanding vocation, and I am grateful for congregations who see the value of an extended time away for ministers.
Renewal leave is different than vacation. It’s not just about the length, which is usually measured in months rather than weeks. There’s much more trust involved on both sides. Pastors count on their people to carry on the work of the church. Congregations expect that their ministers will return to them with energy and creativity after the time away.
Because renewal leave is significant for all involved, I have written the following prayer for the clergyperson’s last worship service before leaving. Feel free to use it as you see fit. It will work best with the minister reading her/his/their respective parts and a lay leader leading the people in the lines from the chancel.
People: On the seventh day of creation, God took a step back from all that hard, holy work and rested.
Minister: That rejuvenation, just like all of creation, was very good.
People: And so it was that God wove the design for replenishment into the fabric of creation itself.
Minister: All of us, made in God's very image, are intended to take time away for renewal.
People: We celebrate today that our minister is taking a season for purposeful rest.
Minister: I love you all, and I love being your minister.
People: We love you, and we are grateful for your leadership and care and for the chance to be in ministry with you.
Minister: This time away will help me be the best possible minister for you. It will permit me to tend more fully to my body, mind, and spirit so that I can help you do the same.
People: This time away will help us be the best possible partners for you. [Choose one of the following here: “It will allow us time to prepare ourselves for the next season of ministry” or “It will call upon us to step into gaps caused by your absence and allow us to own even more our gifts for leadership.”]
Minister: Thank you for this opportunity to take renewal leave. I bless you during this season when we are apart, yet always together as parts of Christ's body.
People: Thank you for modeling sabbath for us in the midst of a world that too often prioritizes productivity. We bless you during this season when we are apart, yet always together as parts of Christ's body.
All: At the end of this renewal leave, may we look back and know, as people created by God and continually re-created by rest, that it was very good for us all.