The Long, Slow Burn...out

Ministry is hard to balance. With abandon, we go "all in" for Jesus. We work and give and sweat and sacrifice until we find ourselves at the end of a rope that is frayed and worn. Burnout is tough in any career or vocation, but when we "work" for God, we subconsciously assume we will be shielded from the effects of too much outflow for too little infill.

Some of the most wounded (bitter?) people I have ever known are those who have burned out in ministry and never recovered. Some of the most grace-filled, nurturing people I have know are those who have gone through end-of-the-rope-burnout and been healed.

I'd love to hear your story of how church work and ministry has impacted you. I would especially love to hear from those who have made it through burnout to "the other side" and are working in ministry with joy, success and balance. How did you do it? What made the difference? Help us.

Additionally, I'd like you to help someone I have become acquainted with named Anne Jackson. She is working on a book about burnout in churches. She is calling the book "Mad Church Disease" because of parallels she sees between cows riddled with Mad Cow Disease and the effects of burnout on those who work in our contemporary church culture.

If you are on church staff, are family member someone on church staff, or are a volunteer in a church, please take some time and help Anne compile information that will help her write this important book. The anonymous survey is at MadChurchDisease.com.

You can find more about this project by going to the website.