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How reasonable is it to think that I can just take a break from church? What I mean to say is that church has become a chore for me lately. I feel like I need to take a break and then I’ll miss it… Then going back I’ll feel refreshed. Maybe I’m just fooling myself [emoji53] Anyone else taken “just a break”? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Lots of people here have taken and do take breaks. I took one for 10 years, although I don’t suggest that. Breaks can be beneficial, as can “partial” breaks like just attending sacrament meeting. It’s really up to you and what you expect to get from it. Perfectly reasonable. Everyone needs a break from time to time. IMO it’s far healthier to take a break when you feel you need one rather than continue to press forward, possibly headed towards a breaking point. ReallyWantToStay wrote:How reasonable is it to think that I can just take a break from church? What I mean to say is that church has become a chore for me lately. I feel like I need to take a break and then I’ll miss it… Then going back I’ll feel refreshed. Maybe I’m just fooling myself [emoji53] Anyone else taken “just a break”?
I am in the same boat. I have a few events that I need to not draw any attention to myself (not to “lie” about how I feel, but I need to let some weddings be about those getting married and not me).I am really struggling how to pull away just a bit without getting really pressured and almost having to say a bit how I feel. I get lots of advice from many at this site that say, “play your cards close to your chest”, but given as involved as I am – I don’t know that I am going to be able to back off without drawing lots of attention from ward and stake leaders. I lean towards being somewhat upfront and sharing enough to have them back off. I feel if I don’t it will just be a few weeks and I will be asked that level anyway.
Yes! I totally understand LookingHard. I teach primary and it’s only when I’m teaching that I feel spiritually nourished. I am sad at the thought of not being there for my class but I’m finding that it’s challenging to stay positive every week. It’s almost like I dread Sundays now. Going on my own with 3 children under 7 doesn’t help either but I think it’s the pity and awkward conversations that bother me more. My husband didn’t die …he just isn’t at church with us anymore! I think I’m gonna send an email to the primary president and let her know, she is aware of our situation and I feel like she could support my decision to take a break. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Small breaks can be done without much notice. We all get busy in life. Skipping a few weeks while trading up….doing other important enriching sabbath activities can be very invigorating. Many times others are so busy they don’t even notice you being gone once or twice.
It can also help to stay involved in some very christ-centered activities like helping people move, home or visiting teaching, soup kitchen, or other service oriented things for people.
Sometimes the break needed is one part of church, like the boring classes or sacrament meetings or leadership meetings. But not an entire cold turkey break.
That’s just one idea that may help some people.
Hi – I find 3 day weekends, school breaks, summer vacation, holidays are good Sundays to take breaks. No one else needs to know the details. Plenty of people are out of town over those times and no one really even notices. It’s been spring break for our schools and the pews are half empty. We were busting out the seams on Easter Sunday next week we will be more normal. I also agree with the suggestions of trading up. It helps.
I think taking a break is an excellent idea. I was finally released from the nursery, so I am left with teaching Gospel Doctrine every other Sunday. I’ve decided to take one Sunday off a month. I don’t think that will be noticed. During my one Sunday off I plan on taking my family to other churches to see what we can get out of them. I hope I don’t chicken out since I’ve never visited another church before and would feel completely out of my element. dtrom34 wrote:During my one Sunday off I plan on taking my family to other churches to see what we can get out of them.
I took my daughter to a Buddhist temple and a catholic cathedral and then the park for a picnic and frisbee. Loved it. If you have a Buddhist temple nearby…I recommend it. One of the most memorable lessons and spiritual experiences my daughter shared with me. She is now married in the temple, but still remembers that Sunday with Dad, as do I. We traded up that Sunday…both needed it. Life went on…no one noticed, we are both active in church, it wasn’t a big “no-no”…but it did help us get over some angst we were having with our ward at that time.
The good thing about the church…if you decide to take a break…it rolls on and is still there when you’re ready to go back.
Sometimes we need a break from an activity or from church programs…that is not taking a break from our pursuit of spirituality and seeking God in our lives. Two different things.
dtrom34 wrote:I think taking a break is an excellent idea. I was finally released from the nursery, so I am left with teaching Gospel Doctrine every other Sunday. I’ve decided to take one Sunday off a month. I don’t think that will be noticed. During my one Sunday off I plan on taking my family to other churches to see what we can get out of them. I hope I don’t chicken out since I’ve never visited another church before and would feel completely out of my element.
Other churches are a lot like other wards. Mostly you’ll be greeted warmly and made to feel welcome, while sometimes you’ll be completely ignored and feel alienated. The best thing about visiting other churches is that nothing at all is expected of you – even if you go a few times.
Breaks are good, but I would set a time limit on it to start. Otherwise, the breaks last years and years. I don’t know your family situation, but consider the impact on your family and your marriage (if any) and children if they don’t see one or more parents at church. Also, consider different levels of breaks on the continuum of breakdom….
a) Stop going for a period of time.
b) Going to a different WArd (if you can handle all the fresh-meat conversations
c) Attending one of the meetings in your home ward but not all.
d) Attending all meetings but getting out of your calling for a while (this requires really good excuses I have found, and may subject you to shunning).
c) Taking a few weekends off while maintaining your calling. Find someone to replace you so you are not letting anyone down.
d) Taking one Sunday a month off.
I’ve done all of these. Staying in the Ward without a calling is perhaps the toughest because you are in the out-group, while attending a different Ward due to well-crafted reasons worked the best. You can attend, but church policy ties the hands of the local leaders in calling you to a position.
Also useful is just taking one Sunday a month off and enjoying yourself. Kind of a like a special case of the Sabbath Day, where you exclude anything you don’t want to do, including going to church. I have a monthly commitment in the community that I really enjoy that takes me away once a month in the weather-friendly months of the year. I love it.
There were times I took my kids camping on Sunday too and that was a lot of fun.
[edit] Don’t forget to take advantage of every Stake and General Conference as time away. That’ll give you a few more times a year. Unless you have a Stake calling…
WantToStay – You’re in a difficult spot if teaching is the thing that spiritually feeds you. And taking even a lot of small breaks from teaching is hard because it’s a pain to arrange subs for all those dates. I hope you can figure something out. Good luck. I haven’t taken a physical break, but mental ones can be quite refreshing. I allow myself to explore in ways I never have before.
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