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Season 1, Episode 34 - Life is uncertain, and ministry is really uncertain.  At least, it feels that way from our limited perspective.  Join us in today's episode as we look at how we deal with struggling churches and find our way forward.

Topics covered include:
1. This is not your fault, and it is not the last pastor or the pastor before that fault.  
2. Your church has a future, so be willing to look for it instead of feeling pressured by its past.
3.  Gather the facts – membership, money, leadership, ministries 
4. Who are the partners who could help you and your leadership imagine what’s next?
5.  Look for where God is already moving.  
6. Take care of yourself.  

We will also look at a wellness practice, what is making this week good, and a moment for mindfulness meditation.

To receive 5- free (short) videos on dealing with stress text the word wellness to 66866

Resources:
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Ministry & Life Coaching and Social Media Management at NicoleReilley.com.
Expanding the Expedition Through Digital Ministry by Nicole Reilley 

www.NicoleReilley.com

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Season 1, Episode 33 - Oftentimes, the world is set up, so we want what we don't yet have.  But what is the secret to happiness, growth, and peace, is wanting what we already have?

In this week's episode, we look at how wanting what we have brings us just what we need in this new year.  Why? 

1. Being satisfied with what we already have builds a great foundation for what is next.
2. Wanting what you have connects us to compassion for ourselves and others.
3. Wanting what we have helps us to enjoy the daily small joys.
4. Wanting what you have lets us see the good we might be missing.
And 5.  As we gain this skill, we will have to cultivate wanting what we have.

We also have a Wellness Practice of the Week, What Is Making This Week Good, and a Mindfulness Meditation.

Resources:
Free Video Course on Managing Stress - Text: Wellness to 66866
Spotify Podcast Playlist (The Clergy Wellness Podcast Music)
Instagram
Facebook
Ministry & Life Coaching and Social Media Management at NicoleReilley.com.
Expanding the Expedition Through Digital Ministry by Nicole Reilley

www.NicoleReilley.com

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Season 1, Episode 32 - Bring your curiosity to today's episode as we look at the power of questions to grow us and our lives.  Plus, wellness practice of the week, what is making this week good and a moment of mindfulness. 

Want to receive 5- free (short) videos on dealing with stress?  Text the word wellness to 66866

Today's questions (for you)
1. What can I just let go of?
2. Where can I let go of the belief that there isn't enough in my life?
3. What do I want from my life?

Today's questions (for ministry)
1. Why does the church matter?
2. What stands in our way of reaching new people?
3. What is our church's greatest strength?


Resources:
Spotify Podcast Playlist
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Ministry & Life Coaching and Social Media Management at NicoleReilley.com.
Expanding the Expedition Through Digital Ministry by Nicole Reilley 

www.NicoleReilley.com

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Season 1, Episode 31 - As clergy, how do we become more resilient?  Today we focus on a behavior that grows our resilience skill set: Having Our Own Back.

Having our own back is about being on our own side and seeing our self-worth even when we make mistakes and fall short.

In today's episode, we look at four behaviors that grow  this skill: 
1.  Knowing this is work you need to do for yourself
2.  Deciding after you make a choice to embrace it 100%.
3. Letting others know what you need and want.
4. Stopping negative self-talk.

We also have a Wellness Practice of the Week, What Is Making This Week Good, and a Mindfulness Meditation.

Resources:
Free Video Course on Managing Stress - Text: Wellness to 66866
Spotify Podcast Playlist (The Clergy Wellness Podcast Music)
Instagram
Facebook
Ministry & Life Coaching and Social Media Management at NicoleReilley.com.
Expanding the Expedition Through Digital Ministry by Nicole Reilley

www.NicoleReilley.com

Send us Fan Mail

Season 1, Episode 30 - In this week's episode, we look at how we can develop new skills in this new year - ones that will help us weather difficult seasons in ministry and life.  

The Harvard Business Review had a good article on how to deal with bad days.  They shared these insights:

 1.  Pinpoint the problem.  

2.  Take a moment to be grateful.  

3.  Take Action 

4.  Change your routine 

5.  Set realistic expectations

These can help, but as clergy, we need additional help, including: 

• First, Know that life is 50-50. 
•  Second, In the midst of terrible times, show everyone some love and patience.
•  Third, ask yourself – who do I want to be in this terrible time?
•  Forth, wait, think and pray before you take major action.

Wellness Practice - Lectio 365 App

What Is Making This Week Good - 1 Second a Day App

Mindfulness Meditation:
From Nadia Bolz-Weber: A blessing for the new year:
“As you enter this new year, as you pack away the Christmas decorations and get out your stretchy pants as you face the onslaught of false promises offered you through new disciplines and elimination diets as you grasp for control of yourself and your life and this chaotic world. May you remember that there is no resolution that, if kept, will make you more worthy of love. There is no resolution that, if kept, will make life less uncertain and allow you to control a pandemic and your children and the way other people act.  So this year, May you just skip the part where you resolve to be better do better and look better this time. May you give yourself the gift of really, really low expectations. May you expect so little of yourself that you can be super proud of the smallest of accomplishments. May you expect so little of the people in your life that you actually notice and cherish every small lovely thing about them. May you expect so little of the supply chain and the service industry that you notice more of what you do get and less of what you don't and then just tip really well anyhow. May you expect to get so little out of 2023 (now 2023) that you can celebrate every single thing it offers you, however small because you deserve joy and not disappointment. So, I wish you a Happy as possible New Year.”

Resources:
Spotify Podcast Playlist
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Ministry & Life Coaching and Social Media Management at NicoleReilley.com.
Expanding the Expedition Through Digital Ministry by Nicole Reilley 

www.NicoleReilley.com

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Season 1, Episode 29 - In today's episode, we look at how clergy can set and live into their goals - even when things are crazy, and life is a challenge.  We also have a Wellness Practice of the Week, What Is Making This Week Good, and a Mindfulness Meditation.

We focus on these points:

We set goals that enable us to:
1. Never feel bad when we don't achieve them.
2. Feel free to adjust goals (or toss them)
3. Set them for a quarter (instead of a year) if that is helpful.

W don't set goals that are about purchasing our "worthiness." We are already worthy, and nothing can change that.

We don't set goals as "self-improvement."

How to move your goals forward:
1. Take a look at your goals - print them out or write them down.  Have them in front of you as we work.
2.  Start by calendaring all your vacation for 2023.
3. Let's schedule your next week together - 1. Calendar your goals, and 2. Do what is on your calendar.
 
Look to hit 80% of your goals by:

• .Plan your goal activities for when you are MOST likely to do them
• Use "downtime," like before a meeting or before bed.
• Experiment - become a student of you.

4. Grow Confidence in your ability to move your life forward by planning and following your plan.

Mindfulness Meditation - "A New Year Prayer" by Sister Mary Ann Barrett, O.P.

Resources:
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Ministry & Life Coaching and Social Media Management at NicoleReilley.com.
Expanding the Expedition Through Digital Ministry by Nicole Reilley

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Season 1, Episode 28 - Do you set goals?  Yes?  No?  Take a journey with me into a new way of thinking about goals for your life and ministry.

We will also focus on a wellness practice of the week, what is making this week good, and a mindfulness meditation.

Why this is a different way to look at goals:
First, I never feel bad when I don’t achieve my goals.
Second, I adjust my goals (even throwing them out if needs be).
Third, I don’t set them for the whole year but as quarterly goals.

Mindfulness Prayer by Vinita Hampton Wright

Resources:
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Ministry & Life Coaching and Social Media Management at NicoleReilley.com.
Expanding the Expedition Through Digital Ministry by Nicole Reilley

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Season 1, Episode 27 - This week we look at success.  What is success to you?  How does that impact your ministry and life?

In addition, we look at a Wellness Practice of the Week, What is Making this Week Good, a Mindfulness Meditation.

From this Week's Episode:

Let’s think about what success is in our own lives.  

• Where do you want to be 2,3, or 5 years from now – what would faithfulness or success look like for you?

1.  As you think about success – think deeply – what do you want?  

•  Do you even know what you want in life and ministry?  
• Do some exploration in your own heart and listen to your deepest yearnings.
• Your dreams and desires are God given – so listen to them. 

 2.  How do you define success/faithfulness in your current ministry context?  

• Get outside of numbers if that isn’t helpful.  
• Where do you want the church to be 2,3,5 years from now?

 3.  Find the courage you need to prioritize what success looks like for you.  

• It is hard to block out what the world thinks success looks like but find the courage to forge your success.  And prioritize that. 

Here is a tool to help.  In coaching, we sometimes use this idea of your future self to help us live into what can be.

12 Questions:
1.  What are my current negative thoughts?

2.  What am I worried about?

3.  What isn’t work in my life?

4.  Where aren’t I showing up fully?

5.  Where am I struggling the most.

6.  What have been the main dreams in my life?

7.  What is my ultimate purpose

8.  If I knew I couldn’t fail, what would I do?

9.  When I visualize your future, what do you see?

10.  Based on what I see in my future– what decisions and commitments do I need to live into now?

11. As you think about yourself in the future = how am I different than I am today?

12.  What does the person I am in the future want to say to me right now? 

 Mindfulness Meditation poem: In Search of Our Kneeling Places by Ann Weems .

Resources:
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Ministry & Life Coaching and Social Media Management at NicoleReilley.com.
Expanding the Expedition Through Digital Ministry by Nicole Reilley

www.NicoleReilley.com

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Season 1, Episode 26 - Today's episode is all about relationships and how our thoughts create them.  Today we also cover a Wellness Practice for the Week, What is Making this Week Good and a Mindfulness Meditation.

Three Things from This Episode:

1. Your relationships with others are your thoughts about them, and that opens up some new possibilities.  

2. Our thoughts cause our feelings about others, and our feelings about people and their behavior can be all over the place. 

3. All this is good news because it gives you freedom in your relationships.

Mindfulness Meditation poem is "Emmanuel" by Lisa Wells Isenhower from Alive Now! Nov/December 1990.

Resources:
Spotify Podcast Playlist
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Ministry & Life Coaching and Social Media Management at NicoleReilley.com.
Expanding the Expedition Through Digital Ministry by Nicole Reilley

www.NicoleReilley.com

Send us Fan Mail

Season 1, Episode 25 - In this episode, we consider what gifts we can give ourselves so that the holidays are excellent (even for clergy types).  Plus: a Wellness Practice for the Week, What is Making this Week Good and a Mindfulness Meditation.

The 8 gifts we discuss are:

1.  Give yourself the gift of more time by streamlining your shopping and using technology.  

 2.  When things get crazy, give yourself the gift of a self-compassion break

 3.  Give yourself the gift of health.

 4.  Give yourself the gift of staying hydrated.

 5.  Give yourself the gift of seeing the holidays through a child’s eyes.

 6.  Give yourself the gift of a special drink you enjoy throughout the season.

 7.  Buy yourself a gift.  

 8.  Give yourself the gift of the 12 days of Christmas.

Today's Mindfulness Meditation uses the poem "Wild Geese" by Mary Oliver.

Resources:
Spotify Podcast Playlist
Instagram
Facebook
Ministry & Life Coaching and Social Media Management at NicoleReilley.com.
Expanding the Expedition Through Digital Ministry by Nicole Reilley

www.NicoleReilley.com