Leading Well Begins with Being Well
By Bianca Schaefer
As leaders, we are constantly scanning for the latest tips and tools — how to handle pressure, resolve conflict, silence comparison, and navigate insecurity. As women, many of us face an added layer — bias that makes leadership feel heavier. But beneath all the skills lies a deeper question we rarely ask: How is the way we lead affecting our health — body, soul, and spirit?
As a health coach, I’ve walked alongside executives who excel outwardly and unravel inwardly. They are respected and resourced — yet depleted. The world may call that “the cost of success,” but Scripture paints a different picture. Jesus never invited us to lead out of depletion. He said, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28–30). That was not metaphor — that was instruction about posture.
In ministry or kingdom work, we often assume that exhaustion validates obedience. But can we really steward people well while neglecting the vessel God placed that calling inside of? Scripture tells us our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19–20). That means how we steward our physical selves is not superficial — it is spiritual.
Prioritizing physical health is not selfish. It is biblical. Just as God designed the Sabbath rest for our soul, He designed the body with needs that are not optional — sleep, nourishment, movement, recovery. Sleep is not indulgence; it is creation designed, (Psalm 127:2). We honour God when we honour the design.
The same applies to how we eat, how we pace ourselves, and how we carry stress. When we care for our bodies and minds in a way that honours God, it becomes an act of worship: “Present your bodies as a living sacrifice…” (Romans 12:1). That includes your nervous system, hormones, digestion, and brain. God cares about all of it.
In the rush of doing God’s work, it is easy to forget these basic truths. I forget it too. But wholeness is not compartmentalizing — being spiritually on fire while physically and mentally collapsing. Wholeness integrates what God never intended us to split apart.
Next time you are tempted to push through hunger, ignore exhaustion, skip rest, or silence your emotional warning lights, pause and remember: tending to those needs is not weakness and not distraction. When done with a biblical motive, it strengthens your calling.
Part of leading well is being well.
Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit. 3 John 1:2, NLT
Reflection Questions
Where have I been neglecting my physical or mental health in the name of leadership or ministry?
What one small change could I make this week that would honour the God who designed my body?
Prayer
Lord, teach me to lead from Your rhythm, not my pressure. Help me honour You not only in what I do but in how I carry the body and mind You entrusted to me. Make my whole life — even my rest — worship. Amen.