Can these practices make an impact on depressive symptoms or pastor's sense of spiritual well-being? The answer is YES!
Depression Symptom Outcomes at 3 and 6 Months:
Secondary goals of the study were to understand the impact of stress management practices on depressive symptoms and spiritual well-being. The depressive symptom reductions experienced by participants were significant for Stress Proofing and MBSR and showed trends in improvement for the Daily Examen.
Spiritual Well-Being Outcomes at 3 and 6 Months:
Spiritual well-being in ministry was measured using an 8-item instrument whereby participants identified the frequency in which they experienced the power and presence of God when completing a variety of common ministry tasks. Daily Examen participants experienced significant increases, and MBSR participants saw a trend toward significant increases in spiritual well-being, although it took the full 6 months.
