September: A Season of Stretching
By W.J de Kock, ThD
Educational Consultant to Partners in Ministry
Professor of Practical Theology at Palmer Theological Seminary of Eastern University
7 minute read
It’s a Thursday in early September—one of those days Australian weather can’t quite commit: is it tights or shorts, umbrella or optimism? The jacarandas are out there, plotting their riot of purple, teasing allergies and triggering memories. In church offices across the country, the air thrums with a special flavour of mid-year energy—part gritty determination, part “good grief, how are we still standing?” If anyone’s counting (and let’s be honest, we kind of are), February’s gleaming vision boards and overzealous colour schemes feel like ancient history. That “we’re actually doing this!” bravado that launched us through Easter and the dawn of autumn? For a moment, everyone believed. Momentum had a pulse.
Now, on spring’s doorstep—Advent still far enough away to be mythical, yet close enough for a whiff of seasonal panic—the wheels can get a bit wonky. Picture the scene: someone, bleary-eyed, clutching their third flat white, sighing, “Were we… meant to be ahead by now?” Exhaustion sneaks in like Brisbane humidity or Melbourne rain—hard to dodge, impossible to ignore. The next committee meeting looms, promising equal parts déjà vu and déjà fatigue. You catch yourself rearranging plans, rationalising setbacks, and secretly wishing September came with a hazard light: “Steam dangerously low, refuel immediately!”
Let’s be clear, ministry fatigue in September isn’t a malfunction, it’s baked into the Aussie rhythm.
What started as the bright, bushy-tailed academic year in February now feels like a hard-won trek towards the late November finish line. The emotional terrain becomes, well, less Bondi Beach and more Kokoda Trail: goals that seemed thrilling after summer now feel a tad ambitious. A whisper of burnout—irritability, bone-deep tiredness, that peculiar pastoral joy-void—pokes up, as cheeky as a magpie in mating season. Recent stats show that more than a third of ministers have considered throwing in the towel over the past year. Stress, loneliness, family strain—they’re all hiding in the narthex, hoping no one will call them out. It's tempting to stuff it all down, slap on a cheery grin, and just keep plodding. But here’s the secret: facing the wall isn’t failing, it’s honest wrestling. This is the classroom of soul.
Marathoners—Sydney, Melbourne, wherever—know “the wall” is part of the deal. Legs ache, lungs threaten rebellion, and quitting beckons. But that’s precisely when stamina and real fitness are built. Ministry’s wall feels terminal, but in reality, it's the threshold—a sacred, gritty passage where tired strategies can finally give way to something deeper and more durable.
Paul knew something about this: “We glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame…” (Romans 5:3–5). Honestly, it’s not the promise pastors are googling at midnight—but it is the one we need. Faith doesn’t grow in shortcut seasons; it stretches, groans, and muscles up in the unpredictable middle.
Let’s make it practical—here are five lived-in pro tips for pushing through the mid-year muddle:
1. Name the Wall. Ignore that inner voice saying “just soldier on.” Instead, grab a notebook or find a trusted mate, and get honest about where the leaks are. Sugar-coating is for lamingtons, not for ministry reflection.
2. Dust Off February’s Goals. Remember those? Look for what’s shifted—either in the plan or amongst your people. This month, host a gathering that’s not about scores or status, but about creative problem-solving and real encouragement. Ban the “just checking in” agenda.
3. Spring Clean What’s Not Working. It’s the time for pruning, not pushing. Maybe some ministries or projects need to be composted. September is perfect for strategic renewal, not for flogging tired horses.
4. Mend the Relationships. When staff or family tensions peak, let Sabbath interrupt the hamster wheel—even a Saturday arvo with zero church talk and maybe a cheeky Netflix binge. Relationships thrive with attention long before burnout bites.
5. Choose Hope. Every time activity tempts as a fix, meditate on Paul’s chain reaction: perseverance leads to character, and character gives birth to hope—even in the wobbly, unfinished middle.
Resist superhero syndrome. Push on if you must, but remember: longevity comes from gentle vulnerability, not from frantic heroics. Delegate, nail down your boundaries, and show your team what Christ-shaped rest actually looks like. The next meeting you cancel in favour of proper Sabbath could be your most powerful ministry move yet.
Heschel, rabbi and poetic legend, said Sabbath is a “palace in time”—a holy interruption to ground us, not just so we catch our breath, but so we remember who we are. Spring, in all its messy unpredictability, begs for a Sabbath soul: maybe a nap on the verandah, maybe an hour wandering among those rebellious jacarandas. Luther would chime in, reminding us vocation isn’t found in conference victories but in the daily grit, when plans fray and trust deepens.
Here’s the invitation—not another tick-box, but a permission slip.
Step off the ministry treadmill for an hour this week. Log out, wander outside, and let the wilful jacarandas remind you: new growth is underground long before it becomes visible. Let the season stretch you without snapping you. Paul’s wall isn’t your undoing; it’s the birthplace of hope. Let September’s long middle be sacred ground. Lean in, tend the challenge, and let hope coax you gently toward what God is already growing.
Sources 1. For a review of the pastoral cycle and mid-year fatigue, see “In the last 12 months 35% of Australian Ministers Considered Quitting,” Sydney Anglicans, June 3, 2023. https://sydneyanglicans.net/news/in-the-last-12-months-35-of-australian-ministers-considered-quitting/533352. On ministry fatigue see “PC(USA) pastors report widespread fatigue, burnout and isolation,” Presbyterian Church USA, October 17, 2021.3. Valerie Ling, Centre for Effective Serving, “In the last 12 months 35% of Australian Ministers Considered Quitting,” Sydney Anglicans, June 3, 2023..4. Romans 5:3–5 (NIV).5. Abraham Joshua Heschel, The Sabbath: Its Meaning for Modern Man (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2005), 15.