Many pastors don’t realize they are burning out until they can barely pray, preach, or care for their families.
Pastoral ministry is one of the most rewarding callings, yet it is also one of the most difficult. Shepherding people requires spiritual, emotional, and physical investments that can leave pastors feeling drained. If pastors do not take steps to recoup what is expended, they could find themselves suffering from burnout.
Burnout is a deep mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual exhaustion that results in chronic fatigue, cynicism, hopelessness, and a sense of failure. It not only affects the pastor, but it also impacts those around him. His family time is often interrupted with irritability. Stress can cause sleeplessness, which only magnifies the stress. Underlying anger can leave the pastor embittered toward those for whom he is responsible.
Burnout is often the silent killer that lurks beneath the surface of many ministers.
Preventing burnout requires pastors to make intentional decisions that protect their spiritual, physical, relational, and emotional health. Physicians tell us that we should not wait until we feel thirsty before we drink water. Rather, to avoid dehydration, we should drink adequate water as a daily discipline. Likewise, a pastor should not wait until he feels the symptoms of burnout to prompt him to address it. Rather, he should be intentional about making wise, healthy decisions on a daily basis. Some pastors have suffered burnout because they have failed to take preventive measures to maintain their spiritual, physical, relational, and emotional health.
Burnout is real, but it is preventable. With intentional choices, pastors can serve with joy and longevity.
What are some key strategies for maintaining an enduring ministry?
Take a Balanced Approach to Ministry
One of the root causes of burnout is overextending ourselves. As pastors, it can be hard to give a guilt-free “no.” Many feel compelled to attend every meeting, activity, or event. Some pastors may say “no” only to be ridden with guilt for having done so.
The church is compared to a body in 1 Corinthians 12, in part, to remind us that God has neither gifted nor called us to do everything. Rather, He has distributed various gifts and callings so that the church—the body—can serve in a healthy manner. Pastors are but one part of the body. Living a balanced and healthy life means we must offer a guilt-free “no” sometimes.
Guard Your Time
Pastors should have a consistent day of the week when they do not go into the office. The pastor should not schedule meetings or attend events on this day. When possible, he should direct all needs to another staff member. If he is the only staff member, he should train a deacon or other congregational leader to handle matters on the specified day. The congregational leader should be taught that this is an investment they can make for the health and well-being of their pastor. A pastor who is well cared-for will be a much more effective shepherd.
Not only should the pastor take one day a week to be away from the burden of ministry, but he should be diligent to use his vacation time.
Some pastors carry an unspoken burden because they fear what may happen while they are away. However, our discomfort with being away from the church may contradict our confession that “He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep,” (Psalm 121:4). We can sleep well—and vacation well—because we remember that God never sleeps!
Nurture a Network of Support
The feeling of loneliness is a major contributor to burnout. Whether an introvert or an extrovert, we all need to have seasons when we gather with like-minded people who can understand the pressures we feel. Indeed, trusted friends can often see imbalance in us before we see it in ourselves.
The opportunity to share our struggles in a vulnerable way often helps us to remember that the world is much larger than our current struggle and God is much greater than any of our problems.
We are created by the triune God to live in community. Adam’s aloneness did not bring God pleasure. The subsequent creation of Eve not only emphasizes the gift of marriage, but it teaches us the necessity of sharing our lives with others. Experientially, our sorrow is deeper when we are alone, and our laughter is louder with a trusted friend. God’s design is for us to find joy when we are with others.
Prioritize Your Family
We have heard too many stories of pastors who lost their home because they feared losing their church. Birthday parties may be cut short because a Sunday School fellowship is scheduled for the same evening. Wedding anniversaries may be postponed because a church function is on the same day.
Pastor, please do not neglect your family for the sake of the church. Jesus will take care of His Bride; you take care of yours.
I heard a wise pastor demonstrate how seriously he prioritized his home over his church. Anytime he started a new pastorate, he spoke about the responsibility he had to shepherd his family.
During the sermon, he would produce a red marker from his jacket pocket. He told the entire church that this marker was the only one in the world that had the power to change his schedule.
He would bring his wife up to the platform and, while handing the marker to her, explained to the church that this marker had the power to veto any event on his calendar. If his wife wrote something on the calendar with that red marker, everything else was rescheduled. Obviously, some events were necessary. But he made his point. Nothing takes priority over his home.
Maintain Healthy Spiritual Disciplines
There is no replacement for Bible reading and prayer to maintain a strong spiritual life. This may seem like stating the obvious for a pastor who is required to study the Bible well to prepare sermons. Yet, sermon preparation is not a replacement for the personal, vibrant devotional life of the faithful pastor. The psalmist brought together the Word and prayer when he wrote in Psalm 119:145-147: “I call with all my heart; answer me, LORD. I will obey your statutes. I call to you; save me, and I will keep your decrees. I rise before dawn and cry out for help; I put my hope in your word.”
Similarly, Jesus prayed in John 17:17, “Sanctify them by your truth; your word is truth.” Resilience for the work of the ministry can only come as we abide in Christ through prayer and reading God’s Word.
Pastoral burnout has harmed many pastors. Be diligent to care for yourself, your relationships, and your home. There is only one you. And you matter to God.
