1. Use your congregation as a continuing education seminar. Everything that happens in your church, positive or negative, is an opportunity for you to learn about yourself, about the church, about the people in it, and about their families.

2. Read books that interest you on topics outside of ministry. Make friends with your local librarian who can recommend new and old books.

3. Find colleagues who still enjoy ministry after many years, have a sense of humor, and are flexible, and take them to lunch from time to time. You will learn something about what it takes to hang in there for the long haul.

4. Research your own family history so you can find out more about what makes you tick. Once again, the places we get stuck in ministry usually, if not always, come out of our families. Don't try to fix your family, just try to learn about them so you can work on yourself.

5. Be a learner. Some suggested areas, beyond the usual theology and ministry nuts and bolts: family systems theory (highly ...