Is your church killing you? If you are a pastor or other church worker, it might be:
*90 percent of pastors work more than 46 hours a week.
*80 percent believe that pastoral ministry affects their families negatively
*75 percent report they’ve had a significant stress-related crisis at least once in their ministry
*40 percent report a serious conflict with a parishioner at least once a month.
*70 percent do not have someone they consider a close friend
*70 percent say they have a lower self-esteem now than when they started out
*45.5 percent of pastors say that they’ve experienced depression or burnout to the extent that they needed to take a leave of absence from ministry.
Combine long hours, limited finances, and each congregation’s unique dysfunctions, and it’s no wonder an estimated 1500 pastors leave the ministry each month. Worse, the problem isn’t limited only to pastors. Ministry workers of all sorts suffer in their vocations: Clergy, volunteers, office staff, those who work in para-church ministries and other non-profits, and their families.
There aren’t many resources available for those experiencing ministry-related burnout, and it can be hard to fully understand to the phenomenon if you’ve never experienced it yourself. Ministry burnout is a woefully under-treated tragedy. So who will minister to the ministers?
Anne Jackson will, for starters. In Mad Church Disease: Overcoming the Burnout Epidemic, Jackson offers both empathy and a path forward to those in need of restoration after time spent in ministry.
Jackson is familiar with the unique challenges ministry workers face. As a pastor’s daughter, she quickly learned that even the most successful Christian leaders and vibrant ministries can have a dark side. After watching her father slowly sink deep into depression when church after church grossly mistreated him, Anne promised never to allow herself to be demolished the way her father had been. Years later, when a stressful ministry job put her in the hospital with serious medical difficulties, she realized she had to somehow break outside the devastating cycle.
Mad Church Disease combines an insider’s understanding with a healer’s firm hand - Jackson gently nurtures the hurting while pushing them to take responsibility for their own choices, their own dysfunctions, and their own healing.
This is not a book for those unwilling to do something about the pain they have suffered:
There may be many external reasons why you’re burned out. Your senior pastor could be a jerk. You may have had some difficult health issues, and now you’re just trying to make ends meet because of all the medical bills that have piled up. Maybe you have genetic chemical imbalances and struggle with depression.
However, we all make choices. And the effect of the decisions you have made over time has led you now to burnout… The first step on this path is taking responsibility. You are responsible both for the choices you’ve made in life and for seeking God’s plan for your healing. Are you ready? (p. 106)
Post a Comment