Do you want your leaders to burn out?

That's an easy question to answer isn't it?  (At least I hope it is, for those of you wondering the answer is no.)  We don't want our leaders burning out, at least in theory we don't.  But what about the practice?

In Exodus 18 Moses and Israel are in camp.(v13-18)"The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, “What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?” Moses answered him, “Because the people come to me to seek God’s will. Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God’s decrees and instructions.” Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone."

Jethro sees that Moses desire to provide God's word for the people and their good desire to have it is in danger of burning him out, and leaving them discouraged and disaffected.  They will both be worn out, exhausted because the burden is too great.  So what's the solution it is to empower and equip other leaders and for them to oversee small groups.  That practical solution will avoid burn out, multiply ministers and encourage people to hear God's word.

We need to hear that warning.  Sometimes in ministry we can be like Moses - we want people to hear God's word and they want to do it so we must do it.  Sometimes we can be like the people.  But the solution is key multiply ministry via leaders who lead small groups.  If you want spiritual care and oversight be in a small group, don't expect one person to provide pastoral care for everyone, unless your expectation is for them to burn out rather than thrive in ministry.

The Problem with Pastors

I've been thinking about a number of things for a while but this week whilst reading Paul Tripp's brilliant 'Dangerous Calling' (a must for EVERYONE in ministry) some of those thoughts have become more crystallised.  I am increasingly convinced we set up our churches so that pastors have a significant chance of burnout and failure.  I am also convinced that pride and sin leads pastors to accept those opportunities to burn out and fail because we look for approval from others in our congregation rather than rooting out identity who we are in Jesus (I say that because I see it in my own heart).

Here are a number of things that were said to me when we entered the ministry 10 years ago by a variety of people; we were told that being in ministry was lonely, that we couldn't afford to have any friends because that would be perceived as favouritism, that we had to be careful how much of ourselves to reveal because then people wouldn't feel they could approach us with their problems.  Fundamentally they are all wrong because they all set the pastor up to be head of the church.  But a pastor is not the head of the church, the pastor is part of the body of which Christ is the head.

And as part of the body the pastor should be engaged in the full one anothering which takes place in the local church.  Those who work for the church are not immune to sin, they are not immune to spiritual blindness and hard heartedness, they do not come automatically plugged into a constant source of joy in the gospel, they are not hardy types who never need encouragement, or rebuke, or counsel, loving warning, or marital help.  Church leaders are people, sinners who have been saved by grace and are in need constantly, day-by-day, hour-by-hour, of that grace worked deeper and deeper into our lives.  Is that how we think of ourselves as church leaders in what ever position or ministry?  Is that how you think of your pastor or minister?  Is that how functionally churches treat their minister?

If we allow, or even worse encourage, pastors and leaders to think of themselves like that we cut them off from the grace we all recognise we need to grow in our faith, to keep going in our walk with Jesus by the Spirit.  And we should expect their to be casualties.  Is the fact the ministries keep on wrecking, that pastors only do short pastorates (less than 15 years), that moral lapse is not uncommon due to the way we set up and think about church leaders.

And pastors do we collaborate, maybe even welcome, that unhealthy set up.  Why?  Because essentially we want others to think well of us, to respect us, to look up to us, because well that's what a church needs in a pastor.  Maybe because that is what we perceive is the job, and because to do anything else may lead to unemployment.  But if we delve deep enough into our hearts it is because of sin; pride, self-reliance, a drift from the gospel that justifies.

What would a healthy model of pastoral ministry look like?  It would be a place where the pastor was viewed not just as a teacher but as someone needing to be taught, not just as a someone who does pastoral care but someone in need of pastoral care, where he was one anothered as others one another, not just someone in need of grace but needing grace, part of the body of Christ not above it or outside it.

Feeding the Feeders

As a leadership team we are working through Marcus Honeysett's helpful book 'Fruitful Leaders' one of the questions it posed us as a leadership was how do those who feed us get fed?  How do we as a church ensure that our pastors are not drained and exhausted by feeding us every week?  It is a brilliant question.  Pastors are privileged to be set aside to devote themselves to studying the bible, praying and preaching but we also need to recognise that can be drained especially at certain times.

We concluded that actually it wasn't something we thought about very much as a church, or as pastors.  We all know that we can feel low and tired and a bit spiritually run down but we do little to address those needs in pastors who are expected to teach us and pastor us.  It is hard as a pastor, especially when you are ministering on your own in a small church to be fed, it is also hard not to cast envious glances (or lingering long looks) at those in team ministry or those working for organisations like UCCF who are brilliant at this sort of feeding, stretching and equipping of its leaders.

Here are some reflections on things that have helped keep me going and fed me as I look to feed others:

1. Gospel Partnership
There are various gospel partnerships which churches can join and which have benefits for pastors.  Last week we had the Yorkshire Evangelical Ministry Assembly which was brilliant.  (Talks are available as MP3's here: http://www.ygp.org.uk/audio.asp .  It is a chance for pastors to get taught, to stand back, to think, to encourage one another and get fresh perspectives and is vital.

But that is only once a year, a new innovation for us in YGP South is our twice yearly training.  Last summer we had a day looking at teaching Deuteronomy, next month we have a day with someone teaching us on 'Preaching to the Heart'.  These times of refreshing and fresh teaching on bible handling and pastoral ministry are vital and refreshing

2. Preaching Group
About every 6 weeks a group of us get together and preach our upcoming sermon and then help one another deconstruct and reconstruct our sermons.  Again we spend time sharing and praying and support one another.  A great reminder, support and chance to be taught God's word afresh.

3. Reading
I'm a voracious reader, I love it and it is vital for my ministry.  It is another opportunity to hear fresh ideas, be stimulated, be reminded, and sometimes when you read something heretical to engage in and sharpen your understanding of God's word.

4. Other Ministry Opportunities
One of the things I have valued most over the last few years has been the chance to preach in CU's.  It is brilliant to be among young keen Christians, especially from a church where our students leave us to go to uni.  It is refreshing to step out of my normal ministry context and see something else entirely, and often be ministered to by the students themselves.  The missions I have been involved in have been a particular blessing to me in refreshing spiritually even whilst tiring physically.

I am incredibly grateful to God for his graciousness in keeping me, in teaching me, in giving me the resources and loving people around me to sustain ministry.  But as I look long term and across the church in the UK I think this is question we need to ask ourselves and our elders and pastors, who is feeding the feeders?