The Divine Crash

Last week my family started a new tradition.  We went on a mini-vacation.  Easter was crazy and I needed a break.  Recently I was reading a blog post about pastors who quit and it said that within 5 years 80% of seminary students quit the ministry, 50% of pastor’s marriages end in divorce, and 1500-1800 ministry leaders quit each month.  This is terrifying to me.  I think too often it happens because pastors do not take care of themselves.  As a Methodist I get four weeks paid vacation and I know Methodist pastors who don’t even use a full week.   I know pastors that are putting in 60-70+ hours each week in work.  I know pastors struggling with depression, self-esteem issues and various forms of self medication.

Too often pastors feel like they are so busy helping others that if they take a week off then the world will collapse.

Too often pastors feel like so many people are depending on them.

Too often pastors feel like they are supposed to be the most spiritual in the group and if they admit their pain they aren’t qualified.

Too often congregation members believe the pastor is at the beckon call of their whims.

This can all be corrected by vacation.  A few days to step away from work ministry and reconnect with your family, your soul, and your God.  Moses did this, Jesus did this, and you should do this.

Go; unplug your phone, don’t check your email, tip large, and spend uninterrupted time with your family.

But you might be sitting there thinking: “But I can’t because _______”

Stop! You are only in ministry because you stopped making excuses for why you couldn’t do it and by faith you jumped in both feet and so now, by faith, stop making excuses, jump in with both feet and trust that God is working in the details.

God is already putting in place the people you need to take over your responsibilities while you are away.  God is already orchestrating everything you need to relax.

Those stats I got from this website

My average sermon is 22minutes.  I have once preached 35 minutes and my shortest is 8 but usually around 22 minutes.  I spend months preparing and I already have sermon series planned through June.  My goal is to preach the entire Bible before I retire.  I pray for each sermon that each person would hear what they need and would grow closer to Jesus through the spirit moving in my words.

However, there is a fundamental problem with sermons. (more…)

Last night I was watching one of my favorite crime dramas, this episode involved a man on death row. In the moments before he was going to be executed and on the walk to the injection chamber there was a chaplain with him.   The entire time the chaplain was praying with him, reading the bible and offering words of grace and asking the man if his soul was at peace.  I could do that guys job.

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We have all seen these emails.  We have gotten them from well-meaning friends and relatives who don’t know any better.  They usually start with some cliché picture of Jesus like this one:

Jesus on the cross

Then the email usually follows with something to the effect of “I love Jesus and if you love Jesus you will send this to ONE MILLION PEOPLE in the next sixty seconds.” and then the email tells you that if you don’t send it to the random number of people then you have denied Jesus and Jesus will deny you before God and then usually they quote some obscure Bible verse or random quote from some random person who may or may not have existed.

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A lot of times in all jobs people get burned out and tired of doing what they do.  Doctors get tired of being a doctor and lawyers get tired of being a lawyer.  Pastors and youth pastors get tired of what they do too.  Often, this happens because a person forgets why they started or they have gotten distracted from the main thing they love.

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