(Published in Leadership in 1990 and 1992, this list of centers has pointed troubled or tired pastors to havens of counseling and rest. Counselors Wes and Judy Roberts have now revised and updated the list. Though not exhaustive, the list is a helpful starting place.
You’ll want to inquire about theological orientation, counseling approach, and other issues before deciding which resource best meets the need at hand.)
When I met Rich and Michelle (not their real names) they were exhausted from the rigors of pastoring a growing church and raising their family. In fact, Michelle had been depressed for months, and Rich admitted he was depleted.
He woke up to his condition when he realized a woman in the congregation was beginning to mean more to him than was right. He was stunned that he was once more fighting the temptations of pornography–just as he had in college and seminary. Then, one of Rich’s best friends told him he was leaving ministry because of an affair. His friend’s story sounded too much like his own.
When Rich poured out his near misstep, he asked if there was a place to rest, be renewed both personally and in his marriage, and be revived in spirit. I recommended Lake Martin Marriage Retreat in Alabama, even though it was some distance.
At Lake Martin, Rich and Michelle received thorough and godly counsel. And, wonderfully, the seeds of romance and fun got planted back in their marriage. When they returned home, even their high school son wondered what had happened to them. According to Rich and Michelle, they are experiencing the best growth in their twenty-one years of marriage, through renewed emphases on prayer, forgiveness, and a willingness to work seriously at their relationship.
Here’s a list of places and people throughout North America who encourage Christian leaders. Their services and rates vary, but their commitment to helping people in ministry is unanimous.
Called Together Ministries
Linda Riley, Director
20820 Avis Avenue
Torrance, CA 90503
310/793-9747
Fax: 310/539-0007
Ministers to pastors’ wives and women in ministry. Offers an extensive mail-order resource catalog, a “Listening Line” for telephone peer counseling, referral services, a free newsletter, and retreats, seminars, and conferences.
Center for Continuing Education
Richard Busch, Director
Episcopal Theological Seminary in Virginia
Alexandria, VA 22304
703/370-6600
Provides a six-week renewal and growth program for ecumenical clergy. Offered three times a year, it’s a time for reflection, learning, discovery, confirmation, and deepening of one’s faith.
Fairhaven Ministries
Charles Shepson, Director
Route 2, Box 1022
Roan Mountain, TN 37687
615/542-5332
First-class facilities provide a place for rest and relaxation, where qualified counselors are available upon request.
Fulfillment in Ministry–for Christian Ministers and Laity
Ed Bratcher, Director
3912 Sturbridge Drive
Durham, NC 27713
919/490-4807
Focuses on identifying the hazards, tools, and rewards of parish ministry, through lectures, retreats, writing, and counseling.
Kettering Clergy Care Center
Robert Peach, Director
1259 East Dorothy Lane
Kettering, OH 45419
513/299-5288
Offers professional care and support to ministers, missionaries, leaders, and employees of church organizations and their families. Services available are counseling, crisis intervention weekends, clergy burnout prevention, clergy marriage enrichment, instruction for boards of congregations, premarital and marital assessment programs, plus a two-week residential clergy training and renewal experience.
Lake Martin Marriage Retreat
Forrest and Nancy Mobley, Directors
1677 Andrews Mill Road
Tallassee, AL 36078
205/857-2165
Fax: 205/857-2365
CompuServe: 72203,533
Designed to refresh and renew marriages, teaches and counsels through individualized programs. Four to six couples gather for group teaching, fellowship, and meals. The Mobleys draw on their experiences of thirty-two years of marriage, of counseling many different couples, and of God’s healing of their own marriage.
Life Enrichment
Wes Roberts, President
14581 East Tufts Avenue
Aurora, CO 80015
303/693-3954
Fax: 303/680-8518
CompuServe: 73743,673
Curt Anderson, Director of Counseling
222 West 2nd Avenue
Plainwell, MI 49080
616/685-2244
CompuServe: 74031,14
Seeks to strengthen Christian leaders in their relationships at home, in their ministry, and in their leisure time. This is accomplished through (1) consulting with the senior leader, board, and staff to strengthen working relationships and clarify vision, (2) offering spiritual direction, biblical counseling, and professional therapy for the hurting leader, spouse, and family, and (3) providing places and programs of brief intensive counseling, rest, and refreshment.
Makahiki Ministries
Bruce and Carol Fincham, Directors
P.O. Box 415
Mariposa, CA 95338
209/966-2988
Named for an old Hawaiian festival of peace and rest, offers a network of hospitality homes in the U.S. and several foreign countries for Christian workers seeking spiritual and physical renewal. Seminars cover biblical views of stress and Christian hospitality.
Marble Retreat
Louis and Melissa McBurney, Directors
139 Bannockburn
Marble, CO 81623
303/963-2499
An interdenominational center for ministers and spouses. Up to four couples come for two weeks of individual and group counseling which is equivalent to about six months of conventional weekly counseling. Each couple has private accommodations, with meals shared family style in this retreat setting high in the central Rockies.
Ministries Resource Center
Gerald and Alita Robertson, Founders
14190 Barker Hollow Road
Woodman, WI 53827
608/988-4649
Located in a scenic hollow near the Wisconsin and Mississippi Rivers is a furnished home available for rest, recreation, spiritual renewal, or on-site counseling. Services include individual or group counseling, crisis counseling and intervention, and marriage and family counseling. Seminars are also conducted on conflict management, pastor/board relationships, and marriage enrichment.
Ministers Counseling Service, B.G.C.T.
Glenn Booth, Director
4144 N. Central Expressway
Dallas, TX 75204-2111
214/826-6591
For ministers and their families who serve in a Texas Baptist church or an agency of the Baptist General Convention of Texas. The services include counseling, referrals to other counselors, counseling subsidies, conferences, workshops, seminars, and retreats.
Mountain Top Retreat
Harold and Beulah Erickson
13705 Cottonwood Canyon Drive
Bozeman, MT 59715
406/763-4566
Ministry of encouragement to ministers and missionaries who seek a quiet place for rest and renewal. Individual guest houses provide privacy in a beautiful mountain setting.
Paraklesis Ministries
Dr. Sidney Draayer, Director
1550 East Beltline SE
Suite 340
Grand Rapids, MI 49506
616/957-9709
800/421-8352
Helps pastors and spouses grow spiritually, emotionally, physically, and relationally through counseling, seminars, consultation, and week-long retreats. Training/help can be arranged for church staffs and for pastors in crisis.
Pine Rest Hospital
Ken Ellis, Coordinator
Christian Ministry Service
300 68th Street SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49501
616/455-5000
Offers counseling and psychiatric interventions for a wide range of stress, marital, and mental health problems by trained professionals in psychiatry, psychology, social work, and chaplaincy.
Pinnacle Ministries
Bill Schraven, Director
Christmas Mountain, WI
608/254-3507
A nondenominational ministry equipping full-time Christian workers for greater effectiveness. Offers retreat facilities, conferences, workshops, counseling, mediation services, and referrals.
SonScape Ministries
Bob Sewell, Director
P.O. Box 7777
Pagosa Springs, CO 81147
303/264-4777
A place of rest, privacy, creative input, and intimacy in the San Juan Mountains of southern Colorado. A spiritual retreat with opportunities for counsel about the red-flag areas of ministry.
Under His Wing Ministries, Inc.
Jerry Frear, Jr., Director
1500 Warren Avenue
Williamsport, PA 17701
717/326-9099
Operates a free pastor’s encouragement line (1-800/875-4388, Monday through Friday from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.). Offers prayer and listening about the various stresses of ministry.
Vallecito Pastoral Counseling
Jerry Brown, Director
19731 County Road 501
Bayfield, CO 81122
303/884-2678
Individualized counseling, career assessment, guidance, and consultation for ministers and their families. Located in the Rocky Mountains of southwestern Colorado. Intensive therapy and marriage and family counseling is available for such issues as forced resignation, stress, and burnout.
Inclusion on this list does not imply endorsement. Neither Leadership nor Wes Roberts of Life Enrichment can accept responsibility for the actions of any person or group listed. If you know of additional places that offer care specifically to Christian leaders, please write to Wes Roberts, Life Enrichment, 14581 East Tufts Avenue, Aurora, CO 80015.
Copyright 1994 Wes and Judy Roberts
Copyright © 1994 by the author or Christianity Today/Leadership Journal. Click here for reprint information on Leadership Journal.
