About the Burn like Stars – Keeping on keeping on in a stressful world course
This course will explore how we can remain energised to burn on in a society when so many are burning out.
We will explore how we can live sustainable and flourishing lives despite the excessive demands placed on our energy and time. We will give consideration to the particular challenge of working within a Christian culture that encourages the denial of self to the cost of one’s health.
Together we will explore how we can burn like stars.
NASA tell us that the capacity of a star to keep shining is determined by what happens deep in their interiors, in what comes from the centre of their being:
‘stars are fuelled by the nuclear fusion of hydrogen to form helium deep in their interiors. The outflow of energy from the central regions of the star provides the pressure necessary to keep the star from collapsing under its own weight, and the energy by which it shines.’
In this course we will reflect together on a series of star inspired questions such as, is there a fusion of our values and our work? How can we sustain an outflow of energy? Is there a pressure sweet spot that keeps us from collapsing? And from what source do we draw the deep interior energy that keeps us shining and burning on?
Through story-telling, presentation, reflective exercises and group discussion we begin the process of burnout recovery or learning how to avoid it. By the end of our time together we will each have a tool kit of practices that we can draw on in order to burn like stars in a stressful universe.
About the tutors
The Revd Dr Gillian Straine is passionately committed to health, healing and Christian living.
She is the author of Introducing Science and Religion: A path through polemic (SPCK, 2014), The Limits of Science? (CSP, 2017) and Cancer: A Pilgrim Companion (SPCK, 2017).
A cancer survivor, Anglican priest, theologian and scientist, she has a strong interest in communication and teaching.
She has a doctorate in Physics from Imperial College London and an MA in Theology from the University of Oxford. She is particularly keen to bring the study of science into conversations about Christian healing.
Wendy Lloyd has created and curated education, worship, prayer, theology and bible discussion resources for almost 20 years. She has an MLitt in Bible and the Contemporary World from the University of St Andrews and recently completed spiritual direction training with Sarum College. Working for the Guild of Health and St. Raphael (GoHealth) as the resource development partner allows her to explore and share her interest in faith, wellbeing, and communication. She has recent lived experience of burnout.
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