Work-life balance

A just balance and scales are the Lord’s; all the weights in the bag are his work. — Proverbs 16:11

Thank-you to my colleague James for bringing Thoughts on Law Prof Work-Life Imbalance From Those Left Behind” by Paul Caron, Pepperdine University School of Law (TaxProf Blog, 7/8/2014) to my attention. My first response was praying for the spouse who shared her story.

Second, I turned to considering the challenges faced by Faculty and Emerging Scholars in “climbing the academic ladder” and what resources from the blog may be helpful to share. As the importance of the topic continued to unfold, I shifted from a long ESN Facebook Wall post to an ESN Blog post. Note: Maybe more articles should receive this attention or become part of a forum group. As you have advice regarding the proper platform, please let me know.

Comment: Exploring the relationship of work-life begins early in the academic process and requires a community of accountability. ESN Blog resources on “balance” include:

• Head, Heart and Hands Together: The Biblical Case.
• Posts in the category of Completing Your PhD — including a series on 13 Ways of Looking at Graduate School and another on What I Wish I’d Known about Graduate School.
  • Don’t miss What I Wish I’d Known: Balancing Life and Graduate School by Hannah Eagleson.
    • Yes, one of the tags on Hannah’s post is balance.

I encourage you to troll around, share some links, even have a discussion of one (or more of the posts). As always, please feel free to comment and let me know when you have material to share:

• writing for the blog
• participating in an interview — a growing “genre” for the blog
• higher ed photos — more on that coming, but feel free to inquire before I get to flesh it out
• recommending articles for the ESN Facebook Wall — you are also welcome to just post 🙂
• prayer requests. Yes, I start the day praying for God’s blessing upon you as you face the challenges of loving God, neighbor, and creation with head, heart, and hands on your campus/in your discipline.

Tom Grosh IV

Tom enjoys daily conversations regarding living out the Biblical Story with his wife Theresa and their four girls, around the block, at Elizabethtown Brethren in Christ Church (where he teaches adult electives and co-leads a small group), among healthcare professionals as the South Central PA Area Director for the Christian Medical & Dental Associations (CMDA), and in higher ed as a volunteer with the Emerging Scholars Network (ESN). The Christian Medical Society / CMDA at Penn State College of Medicine is the hub of his ministry with CMDA. Note: Tom served with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship / USA for 20+ years, including 6+ years as the Associate Director of ESN. He has written for the ESN blog from its launch in August 2008. He has studied Biology (B.S.), Higher Education (M.A.), Spiritual Direction (Certificate), Spiritual Formation (M.A.R.), Ministry to Emerging Generations (D.Min.). To God be the glory!

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