Burning Out, Rusting Out or Holding Out?
Ministers, like motors, needn't die of overactivity or inactivity. A little maintenance will keep them running for the long haul.
James D. Berkley
January 1, 1983
A few months ago a friend of mine-one of the most gifted and effective pastors I have ever met- very nearly drove his car off a bridge. Intentionally. The pressures of ministry ate to the core of this young pastor of a thriving church. He mentally composed a farewell message, determined the best freeway bridge for his purposes, and planned the final escape that would neatly conclude his depressed existence.
But before he got in his car, he remembered he had an appointment. Instead of suicide, he dutifully attended a committee meeting.
Another friend serves a small church with large problems. When I asked how the ministry was going, a long sigh best described his feelings. He is not sure how long he can take it.
Still another pastor, young and dedicated, admits to a succession of stomach ailments. Every contact he makes, every decision, every responsibility finds its way to his viscera. Antacid manufacturers love him.
So many pastors enter their calling with superior training, gifts and talent to spare, and all the drive in the world, only to be pressed through the ministerial sieve. Great dreams turn into defeat, despair, exhaustion, and ulcers. As I number the casualties, I often wonder, "Is disaster inevitable?"
British evangelist Christmas Evans once declared, "It is better to burn out than to rust out!" I admire the bravado. It sounds dedicated, bold, and stirring. However, when I view the burnt-outs and the almost burnt-outs who lie by the ecclesiastical road, the glory fails to reach me. I see pain and waste and unfinished service. Is there not a third alternative to either burning out or rusting out? In Acts 2(1:24, Paul stated, "I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task ...
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