
MBCM Pastors and Spouses REFRESH retreat

Welcome to the resource page, prepared specifically for the attendees of the Refresh Retreat hosted by Mennonite Brethren Church of Manitoba who were part of the event on May 29-31, 2023
The pdf of the presentation Carolyn gave on Sunday evening is here. The slides for the Monday morning slides are here.
The article from the Harvard Business Review on “6 Causes of Burnout and How to Avoid Them” is here.
Carolyn spoke of Nagoskis’ book on Burnout. Although it says it is specifically written for women, I think, for the most part, it is written for caregivers.
To read a story similar to the on that Carolyn told on Sunday evening, along with the video of how we’re gonna get through post Covid, refer to the article she wrote in the blog section of the website.
To learn more about the psychological distancing feeling of shame that we speak of on Monday morning, take a look at Dr. Brené Brown’s TED talk, Listening to Shame.
On Sunday evening, Carolyn provided you with some questions to ponder about the pouring out of pastors during this time. You’ll find these questions below.



The following are resources that were recommended to me by retreat attenders. I am not familiar with them–yet!
The Place We Find Ourselves. This is a podcast hosted by Adam Young with my understanding that it allows listeners to understand how someone works through issues through an “attachment lens” (ie that we are wired for connection) I have provided the link to his website but “The Place We find Ourselves” podcast seems to be available on most podcast platforms.
Curt Thompson‘s writings also recommended. His books on shame, our desire to be known, and the importance of presence in suffering are well respected.
Ellen Duffield was also suggested to me as a woman who writes about Belonging, Being, and Contributing, and has done some work specifically around developing leadership skills for women.
If you have additional resources around the topics we discussed at the retreat please send them to my email: contact@carolynklassen or through the contact page on this website and I’ll add them here!


Dare to Lead
"Brave Work, Tough Conversations, Whole Hearts" Available in soft cover, hard cover, audio and electronically. Applying the material to the workplace.

Daring Greatly
The good intro book to: "Show up, be seen, live brave"™ Available in all formats.