Practicing Balance ― How Congregations Can Support Harmony in Work and Life

Work-life imbalance is a problem that has personal, national, and religious implications. Millions of Americans sense that they are rushing through life and that their work and non-work lives compete with one another. Many of us are harming our health through overwork. David Gray's Practicing Balance demonstrates why congregational leaders should take work-life imbalance seriously. The issue gets in the way of spiritual development, church attendance, and member involvement. As leaders look to help their congregations grow, particularly by attracting families with children, they would do well to understand and account for the problem. If you are struggling with finding balance in life, this book can help. Practicing Balance contains ideas and experiences that can help church members and all people develop spiritual practices for a healthy life. It tackles the time crunch challenges that are threatening so many families. It can help Christians realize God's calling for their life and how the way they use their time and set their schedules can draw them closer to God. For anyone interested in the fields of work life and work family, this book breaks new ground in discussing how people of faith are and can be involved in encouraging balance and in addressing the structure of American workplaces. Through his experience reading the social science research, listening to people's struggles, studying theology as a pastor, and dealing with his own work-life imbalance, Gray has come to believe that increasing workplace flexibility and deepening individual spiritual practice are two of the most important solutions that can help Americans, particularly Christians in congregations, live a balanced life. Gray shows how members of congregations, acting both individually and collectively, can use the resources of their faith to implement these two solutions. Practicing Balance will help all of us make balance a higher priority and draw on the resources of our faith as we seek to balance the many activities of our life.

David Edman Gray serves as head pastor of Bradley Hills Presbyterian Church in Bethesda, MD and director of the Workforce and Family Program at the New America Foundation in Washington, D.C. when he is not trying to stay balanced chasing his four small children.