When John Calvin was dying in 1564, he called some of his closest friends to gather around him. Among them the gifted Hebraist Michel Cop, the precocious Nicolas Colladon, the brilliant Theodore Beza and others. He spoke with them about his early days in the ministry in Geneva, the hostility he faced; he defended his ministry and interpretation of Scriptures, and then the great leader of the Reformation took the time to apologize for his short temper during his long illness. He then shook the hands of each of his colleagues as they departed with a heavy heart.
I am moved by that entire scene especially as this company of pastors bonded over such fruitful ministries. They fought together to re-build a city after the laws of King Jesus, they navigated intense civil unrest, worked tirelessly to ensure that the people of Geneva received the best Christian education possible as they were now exposed to the teachings of Scriptures unhindered by ecclesiastical bureaucracy.
We need a new company of pastors who will support each other in times of turmoil, when revolts are on the horizon, and the Word of God is mocked everywhere. Pastors have faced difficulty in every century, but no other time in history has pastoral burnout, discouragement, and sadness so characterized the office of the clergy. The harsh reality of pastoral suicide among celebrity and local pastors in our day in America exemplifies this sad trend in evangelicalism. In fact, studies show that there has been an increase in suicides among evangelical pastors in the last 30 years. The reasons are many, but here is a small sample:
“More than half of evangelical and Reformed pastors told the Schaeffer Institute in 2015 and 2016 that although they’re happier (79 percent), they don’t have any good and true friends (58 percent). About the same number reported they can’t meet their church’s unrealistic expectations (52 percent). And close to a third battle discouragement (34 percent) or depression/the fear of inadequacy (35 percent) on a regular basis.”
The average stay of a pastor in a local church or in the pastorate altogether is under five years. Suffice to say, no pastor, no matter how gifted, can establish any form of vision or identity in that short amount of time. This needs to stop!
I have spent the last 6 years taking classes, reading, and am in the process or writing on this very topic because it not only impacts me as a pastor, but I have seen the dreadful eyes of death too close among my dear pastor friends. Many of them will never have the privilege of gathering friends on their deathbed and talk about their war stories and their tireless defense of the faith.
There are various ways to fight this trend, and there are practical ways to see this reversed in our generation. But the parishioner needs to see this reality loud and clear. Pastors do not enter the ministry for glory; they do not carry the burdens of the people for pleasure; they don’t maintain confidentiality for leisure; they don’t deal with division for the fun of it; they do all these things under the authority of the Great Shepherd who called us to this holy calling to serve the flock and to satisfy our Christ.
Pray for your leaders for they watch over your soul (Heb. 13:17). They desire your good and your prosperity under His good hands. Remember their labors and petition God to give them strength sermon after sermon, eucharist after eucharist, counseling after counseling, writing after writing. As the Apostle writes, “Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.”
