Monday Morning Insight Weblog: Why Young Pastors Leave the Ministry from Naked Religion

My esteemed colleague BJ B is making the big time with his blog Naked Religion. Monday Morning Insight picked up one of his recent posts and I was blown away by the response. He had 20-30 hits on his blog that day but the number of responses to it on the MMI site is staggering. I remember several years ago, H.B. London from Focus on the Family came to speak at a Great Lakes Conference pastor's retreat. At that time he suggested that 50% of ministers were leaving ministry within 5 years of being ordained. They were stressed out, burned out, disillusioned, frustrated beyond understanding, angry, hurt, abused, lost, under trained and bored. I've been through some of that and it is unfathomably painful. But I am really glad to have served at Trinity Church most recently. There were some people there who offered a lot of unconditional love that was really healing to me. Things weren't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but I encountered some grace bearing people there who treasured the good in me and tolerated some of the bad. I'm thankful I didn't quit after 5 years.