Many years ago, while serving current and prospective church leaders in my role as a Christian college professor and campus pastor, I began to notice a disturbing trend. An increasing number of my friends and colleagues around the country were leaving public ministry at an alarming rate, due primarily to the crippling effects of job-related stress and burnout. We were literally losing pastors faster than we could replace them. My heart was broken not only because of the severe damage that was being done to my friends and colleagues, but for the devastating impact that it was having on the fulfillment of our Lord’s Great Commission.
Initially, this led me to conduct extensive research on the root causes of ministry burnout during the completion of a doctoral program in leadership and spiritual formation at George Fox University. The insights I was able to glean from my doctoral work formed the foundation for the development of a Center for Spiritual Renewal, the creation of a graduate degree program in spiritual leadership, and the publication of my first book, Rhythms of Grace: Life-Saving Disciplines for Spiritual Leaders,
One of the key findings that has repeatedly surfaced over the years in regard to how to alleviate burnout and reduce the rate of premature departure from public ministry is reflected in a report published by the Clergy Health Initiative at Duke Divinity School. When the researchers compared the responses from two sets of pastors, one group that was flourishing in ministry and another group that was languishing in ministry, they noticed important differences in how the two groups take care of themselves and orient their work. When the dust settled, one factor stood out above all the rest: "flourishers attend to their well-being." In fact, the researchers found that "94 percent of clergy with flourishing mental health are intentional about spending time on personal care such as exercise, prayer, family relationships and hobbies."
For the past 20 years or so, my core passion in life has been to do whatever I can to encourage and equip pastors, missionaries and other church leaders to attend to their own personal health and well-being in order to sustain faithful, effective, lifelong ministry in and through the body of Christ. And that is why I am so thankful for the privilege of partnering with my dear friend and colleague, Samuel Huang, in the launching of Broken Hearted and Hope Ministries. I pray that whatever we may have to offer in the days ahead may prove to be a source of tangible blessing to each one of you, our fellow servants and co-laborers for Christ. To borrow from Mr. Spock, may you “live long and prosper!”
“Beloved friend, I pray that you are prospering in every way and that you continually enjoy good health, just as your soul is prospering” (3 John 2, TPT).
Dr. Rev. David Williams (Team Member)
