Burnout in Ministry

Initially, burnout was reserved for those in high stress careers. What I’ve noticed recently is that burnout isn’t just for the Type-A overachieving doctors we assume will suffer from it. The more I’ve interacted and worked with friends in ministry the more I realize it’s not just burnout in medicine– burnout affects the artist, the dreamers, and the servants too. And much more than people want to admit it, burnout affects those in ministry as well. I spent the last three years working part time in medicine and part time doing a missions ministry, so this week we’re going to concentrate on burnout in ministry.

What’s the problem in ministry?

1. The mission. We have heard it many times before- “the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.” And it’s so true- there are very few Christians who are dedicated to pastoring and evangelizing and discipling other people, leaving those who do feeling like they are never quite doing enough. I spent far too many days thinking that I shouldn’t stop because who else would do the work? “I just have to keep going because God has entrusted me with much.” But I ran myself into the ground far too long not realizing that the mission of God was not meant to be a weight I carried on my shoulders, and when I wore it like that, it just dragged everything down- including the people I tried to reach out to.

 

2.  The denial. I got to a point where I couldn’t “turn off” serving. I wasn’t even listening to sermons and doing my quiet time so I could spend time with God, I was constantly turning it into a lesson, making notes that I would share with others, thinking of people I needed to reach out to or catch up with. Someone always needed help. And somehow, that someone was never me. It was never about me. There was always more to do. I’ve given the example a hundred times that our lives as Christians should be us sharing with others because the things we have learned fill us up to the brim and overflow onto others like a glass overflowing with water. But it’s easy to say, and an entirely different thing to live. You are not letting God down when you take time to let him minister and refresh and encourage you. And if you miss that part, you won’t make it long.

 

3. The Sabbath. God created us with the intention of us taking a Sabbath, or resting at the end of hard work. We know it. We read the verses. And then we go right back to life as usual, insisting that we’ll do it next week. A “day of rest” gets reduced down to ten minutes of a quiet time that we assume will somehow be equivalent. And I would often excuse myself, instructing others to take more time, but not allowing myself to because “they needed me serving.” I far too often got stuck not just refusing to admit my limitations, but also refusing to admit my pride. If God has successfully getting people saved for the last 2000 years, I think He’ll be okay if I take the night off.

 

4. The lack of transparency. I spent far too long thinking that people needed me perfect in order to minister to them. We spend so much time hiding our pain, but others are healed when we let them in, not hide from them. It was honestly only by accident that I realized my faith is much more real when I am real. Far too often, realizing their leaders’ failures and regrets are what people need to make it through their own struggles because being honest opens others up to letting them share themselves. If we spend too much time trying to look perfect, we end up messing up the very relationships we are trying to help.

 

5. The calling. I let the phrase “to whom much is given, much is required” become a dead weight I carried around. I was going to do my best to carry and juggle and steward all that God had given me. But instead of being from a thankful heart, I did everything out of expectation and insecurity. Instead of love filled service to God, it quickly became a heart-wrenching religious duty. God did not give you your calling to be a burden you carry. He meant it to be a journey you help Him complete. Matthew 11:28-30 tells us that we take God’s yoke upon us and learn from Him. The concept initially meant that a smaller ox would be strapped to a larger one who would carry most of the weight. But even as the smaller ox get stronger and takes more responsibility, they still do the work together. And God is still the one who carries most of the weight. The pain, the frustrations, the worries, the testimonies, the lives changed are all still on His shoulders. Jesus did not die for you to become a slave working yourself to death to prove yourself to the master. He died to give you the position of heir to the throne. It’s not earned, it’s accepted. We have to accept the fact that this is not all on our shoulders and trust God with those we serve just like we trusted him with our lives. And we have to make a daily decision to die not just to ourselves, but to the work-infused, self-reliant culture we live in, and truly let God help us rest.