Why Avoiding Pastoral Burnout Starts With Embracing Your Human Limitations

The fastest way to burn out in ministry is to believe it’s impossible for you to burn out in ministry.

I once heard the story of a pastor who was rebuked: “There’s only one Messiah, and you’re not him.” The pastor loved helping people, but he was overextending himself in ministry. Who knows. Had he not been rebuked, he might have burnt out from pastoral ministry.

One of the causes of pastoral burnout is the inability of pastors to properly work within their creaturely limitations. The word “creature” seems awkward. It’s like I’m referring to an animal. But that’s what you are: a creature. God is the Creator, and you are a creature. As a creature, you need food, water, and adequate rest. You must embrace your God-given limitations to avoid burnout.¹

But this is hard to do, isn’t it? In The Unhurried Pastor, Ronnie Martin writes: “Embracing my humanity feels boring, average, mundane, uninspiring, and full of opportunities to not live up to the potential that I imagine for myself as a 21^st-century pastor.” We struggle with embracing our limitations because there’s something about prayer and the ministry of the Word that seems too simple (Acts 6:4). We over-complicate ministry and take on too many tasks that aren’t necessary to our main calling.

Sometimes church members put pastors on a piety pedestal. But you know that you need the Lord’s grace just as much as the people in your congregation. You have personality quirks, personal blindspots, spacial limitations, character deficiencies, family of origin issues, and you’re continually undergoing sanctification. You are a person before you are a pastor; a sheep before you are a shepherd. You are a human. The Creator-creature distinction must always be on your mind when you consider what you’ll say “yes” to and what you’ll say “no” to.

The longer I’m a pastor, the more I see that spiritual maturity and growth in godliness are the most important factors for my effectiveness in ministry. I’m glad I got an MDiv and my church was happy to see me ordained, but those certifications in and of themselves are insufficient for me to pastor well. If we are not secure in the Lord, we will seek security in something else. If we do not preach the gospel to ourselves, we will be less effective in preaching the gospel to others. If we do not ponder the glories of our union with Christ, contentment will be difficult in ministry. So much of avoiding pastoral burnout comes from working within your creaturely limitations, and so much of your ability to work within your creaturely limitations comes from deep spiritual and personal maturity.

So yes, we are wise to heed the oft-shared counsel of taking one day off per week, not checking your phone the first hour or last hour of the day, practicing the sabbath, exercising regularly, getting adequate sleep, and enjoying a high-protein diet. But practical tips won’t be useful in the long run without godly character.

How do you know your limitations? There are many ways to answer this question, but here’s one: listen to your body. Your body talks to you more than you realize. If you’re always tired, you likely need better sleep and should be doing less. If you never have joy, you might need more unhurried time in private prayer and Bible reading. If you constantly feel discouraged, you might need more mentors and friends. Listen to your body.

Also, if you’re married, listen to your wife. Ask her if she feels like you are present when at home. Listen closely to her feedback. Don’t get defensive. Better to hear hard words now than to go through the emotional pain of burnout later.

Finally, you’ll grow in embracing your limitations through trial and error. It’s okay to make mistakes. After all, wisdom is usually hard-won. Just be sure to learn from your mistakes and not make them twice.

The fastest way to burn out in ministry is to believe it’s impossible for you to burn out in ministry. You might think you are the exception to the rule because of your zeal, calling, or credentials, but you are sadly mistaken. As long as you live in this fallen world, burnout is on the table for you. The first step in avoiding it is by embracing your human limitations.

1. Inspired by chapter one in The Unhurried Pastor: Redefining Productivity for a More Sustainable Ministry by Brian Croft and Ronnie Martin.