According to some researchers ministers are "forced out" at the rate of six every day. Many for little reason other than a fight over the loudness of the organ, whether the pastor visits the sick enough or for his "poor sermons". It is always about control of the church.
People who are "called into the ministry are woefully naive about the difficulty of dealing with church conflict. Since I now spend a lot of time pastoring pastors and para-church leaders I get to see the results of such innocence.
The pastor loses his/her livlihood, reputation family stability and emotional strength. Depression, anxiety and family conflict often accompany the church fights. I wish seminaries and schools that taught leaders how to avoid such devastation but few are doing the job.
This is my main task today but, unfortunately, most leaders fail to ask for help until the crisis has gone so far that the church is in a mess too big to repair. Many failures can be prevented by wise interventions.
In the next years I will teach more seminars for youth leaders, pastors, pastoral care ministers and para church leaders as well as elders who want to foster healthy Christian organizations. I am calling them, Staying Alive in the Battle.
Tune in for more information as I develop a plan for Pastoring the Pastors
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