Are you in a Pastor pressure cooker?

Burnout is real

Putting the needs of others first is noble and selfless however, if you are always putting the needs of others first and your needs last, it can lead to burnout. Burnout is not limited exclusively to the corporate world; it can happen in any work environment. Burnout can result in physical and/or emotional exhaustion leading to:

• A sense of failure and self-doubt
• Feeling helpless, trapped, and defeated
• Detachment, feeling alone in the world
• Loss of motivation
• Decreased satisfaction and sense of accomplishment

Look for signs in your life that you are taking strain before you reach the point of burnout. Are you hesitant to meet with people or when you do, wonder when they are going to leave? Do you put your ‘to-do’ list before your relationships? Humbly seek the Lord to guide you in identifying your capacity. Your job description does not include saying yes to every request. Know your boundaries and don’t be afraid to impose them. God did not call you to be all things to all men or to sacrifice your health, wellbeing and relationships. Remember why you became a leader…Wasn’t it to love people, talk to people and pray with them? It is possible to do what you love, and to love yourself while you do it.

Know your calling 

Go back to basics and ask yourself ‘what is my calling?’ We are all divinely and individually made and so too is our calling. God placed a calling on your life that is specifically and divinely for you. Knowing your calling and understanding that it is God ordained is the first step to accepting that it is enough, that you are enough.

• Has God asked you to change the systemic issues with the global church?
• Has God called you to love/coach/pray for individuals?
• Has God called you to a geographic area?
• Has God called you to an itinerant ministry?

Maybe you have been called to something else than what you are doing today and change is needed. Whatever your calling is, we have all been divinely made to work together in faith as one body in Christ. The Body of Christ is made up of individual parts, each with its own purpose and function that is integral to the Body as a whole. Ultimately, the whole is greater than the part! You don’t have to do it all.

Let your light shine and others too

We each have giftings that allow us to shine for God’s glory.

You may be a gifted

• orator
• artist
• musician
• software technician
• teacher etc.

No one person is gifted in all areas nor were they designed to be. The disciples chosen by Jesus were from all walks of life, each with different gifts. Matthew was a talented writer, Peter was a passionate leader, Andrew a gifted fisher of men etc. Encouraging people in your congregation to use their gifts is what God intended. Knowing who you are and what your gifts are is the foundation of your calling and releases you from the responsibility of feeling like you must ‘do it all’. By allowing your people to let their gifts shine releases you from the heavy weight of ‘being all things to all men’ and begins to restore the balance of responsibility that the early church experienced.

Let the musicians play!

Let the preachers preach!

Let the healers heal!

Let the administrators take care of the administration tasks!

We are all working together for the Glory of our Lord and Saviour to advance His Kingdom and by sharing the workload, we ensure the wellbeing of every single person, including you.