It was sad to see that pastor Isaac Hunter committed suicide this week. Issac is the son of Joel Hunter, a presidential advisor, who is also a past coworker and long time friend of my Mother in law. In reading an article about his death I saw some very shocking statistics from the Schaeffer Institute on the mental/emotional state of pastors.
Here is a link to the original article - Pastors and suicide
Here is segment of the article with the statistics I found so surprising -
"There is no lack of statistics about pastors and depression, burnout, health, low pay, spirituality, relationships and longevity—and none of them are good. According to the Schaeffer Institute, 70 percent of pastors constantly fight depression, and 71 percent are burned out. Meanwhile, 72 percent of pastors say they only study the Bible when they are preparing for sermons; 80 percent believe pastoral ministry has negatively affected their families; and 70 percent say they don’t have a close friend. The Schaeffer Institute also reports that 80 percent of seminary and Bible school graduates will leave the ministry within five years."
I have mixed feelings about these statistics. On one hand I wish the pastorate was not so mentally and emotionally taxing on most. On the other hand, I can relate to these statistics and it is good to know that I am not the only one who feels stressed and burnt out at times. I also must take comfort in the fact that I have some very close friends in the church, and I don't think my church or ministry has been a negative influence on my family.
I was talking to a friend who pastors a church near me recently and he asked if I was encouraged by what I see in my church, I replied that I was very encouraged at the moment, but if he asked me again in a few hours and I may feel differently. I hope I have learned that my own feelings, as up and down as they can be, are not the best way to evaluate the success or failure of anything, especially the church.
One of the main ways I deal with the mental/emotional struggles of ministry is by remembering that this is not heaven and I, like others, must look to the life to come for a stress free life. In the meantime, I hope to continue to do the Lords' work with His help, even with these occasional mental/emotional struggles. I pray that others who suffer in ministry would find people they can share their struggles with and find the encouragement to press on until the Lord calls them home.
Quote above from - Why Are So Many Pastors Committing Suicide?
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