The Complete Guide to Surviving Church Burn

It is Good to Praise the Lord!

2011-02-16T22:02:00.000-06:00

A psalm. A song. For the Sabbath day.
1 It is good to praise the Lord
and make music to your name, O Most High,
2 proclaiming your love in the morning
and your faithfulness at night,
3 to the music of the ten-stringed lyre
and the melody of the harp.
4 For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord;
I sing for joy at what your hands have done.
5 How great are your works, Lord,
how profound your thoughts!
6 Senseless people do not know,
fools do not understand,
7 that though the wicked spring up like grass
and all evildoers flourish,
they will be destroyed forever.
8 But you, Lord, are forever exalted.
9 For surely your enemies, Lord,
surely your enemies will perish;
all evildoers will be scattered.
10 You have exalted my horn like that of a wild ox;
fine oils have been poured on me.
11 My eyes have seen the defeat of my adversaries;
my ears have heard the rout of my wicked foes.
12 The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;
13 planted in the house of the Lord,
they will flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They will still bear fruit in old age,
they will stay fresh and green,
15 proclaiming, "The Lord is upright;
he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him." Psalm 92

New Year a Time of Renewal

2010-12-29T22:06:00.000-06:00

A New Year is right around the corner.

A time of renewal....a time of refreshing....a time of putting aside the old and put on the new.

It is time to look toward the future, grasp onto hope, rely on faith, and put your trust in the Father that loves you without reserve.

I pray that this new year you will find the peace, love and joy that you so richly deserve.

Happy New Year!

Rule #16: Be Thankful

2010-11-28T10:07:00.000-06:00

It is imperative to remember all that God has done for us....especially in the hard times.

It is easy to lavish praise when things are going well, but hard to do when things are not going well.

The practice of being thankful is very necessary in the hard times. It keeps us mindful of the good things God has worked on our behalf. It helps to remind us of how He works on our behalf all of the time. It shows us that glimmer of hope that we need to make through the current turmoil.

So...remember to be thankful all of the time. God is good!

Rule #15: Remember Whose You Are!

2010-10-19T20:19:00.000-05:00

When everything around you is falling apart.....remember whose you are.

When life seems to be giving you more than you can handle......remember whose you are.

When your mind is swirling with despair......remember whose you are.

He is your Father.

He is your salvation.

He is your hope.

He is your peace.

He is your merciful, loving, heavenly Father.

And that's more than enough!

Rule #14: Put Away the Blame Thrower!

2010-10-04T16:35:00.000-05:00

Trust me....no good can come from trying to place blame on who was right and who was wrong.

Just face the fact that someone was wrong....get over it....and move on! Sometimes you have to take the "high road", accept some responsibility, and get on with the recovery process.

The sooner we realize that the only one getting hurt in the blame placing process is us, the sooner the healing process can begin.

So put the Blame Thrower down and walk away! :)

Rule #13: Never Isolate Yourself

2010-09-28T17:32:00.000-05:00

It is so easy to retreat into our own little world when we are hurting. In our pain, it is commonplace for us to be found licking our wounds somewhere in the dark...alone...isolated from everyone and everything.

When we are at this point, it is easy for the enemy to lie to us, to talk the problem up to us, and to make things worse in our minds than they possibly are.

When suffering alone it is also easier for bitterness to set in and take root.

Isolation is the beginning of desolation, so it is important to do the following;

surround yourself with positive people (Rule #6)
stay in close contact with the Father
don't listen to the lies of the enemy
put yourself in His word and remember His promises

Rule #12: Remember to Forget!

2010-09-22T20:13:00.000-05:00

This one is a doozy!

It's a lot easier to say you forgive someone than it is to forget what they have done to you.

Anyone who has ever had an argument with their spouse, girlfriend, boyfriend or anyone else for that matter, knows this is truth. Because inevitably every thing you have ever done wrong will come to light in an heated argument. Don't you wish that they would just forget about it and move on? :)

If we are ever going to make it through whatever has caused the burn, we have got to Remember to Forget it.

You may not ever really truly forget what happened, but you can choose how you remember.

Try this little experiment; when faced with the opportunity to remember what happened, choose instead to focus on a positive experience or good thing that happened. Choose to talk about that instead of the negative. It works for me.

Rule #11: You Must Learn to Forgive!

2010-09-22T20:00:00.000-05:00

If you don't want bitterness to take root in your life then you will have to master the art of forgiving. (Refer to Rule #2)

It isn't easy by any stretch of the imagination, but it is critical in my opinion.

You must remember that you are dealing with flawed humans and illogical emotions at times. Sometimes what happens doesn't make sense. Sometimes decisions and reactions are based on those flawed and illogical human emotions on both sides.

Learn to let it go and pray for forgiveness...for you and them!

Rule #10: Foster Friendships Beyond the Four Walls of Church

2010-09-19T20:27:00.001-05:00

I had the occasion this past week to be in company with people whom my wife and I used to attend church with.

You could tell the relationships which had blossomed beyond the four walls of our former church. You could feel the difference in the level and depth of relationship as opposed to the ones where our whole relationship was based on what we did together at church. In one word....awkward! You could sense the uneasiness of not knowing how to handle the situation, so we chose to focus our attention on the ones with whom we had deeper relationships with, making it a little more enjoyable.

What needs to be remembered is that if your whole relationship is based on serving together at a church with nothing outside of that sphere, then there is no commonality beyond that. It doesn't matter how long you have known each other within that sphere: once commonality is removed, there is only what used to be and the divide of where you are now.

You may question, "Can these relationships be salvaged?" I believe they can, although you may need to take into consideration outside influences if the parting was of a tumultuous nature. In actuality, our relationship with one of the people that still attends there has only just begun to blossom since our parting.

To me, if any lesson is to be learned from our outing it would be this: make sure to foster and nurture friendships that go beyond the four walls of the church. Realize that some people just will not know how to handle their encounters with you.

Rule #9: Challenge Everything You've Ever Been Taught

2010-09-15T19:24:00.002-05:00

It is imperative that you check everything you hold as truth, and see how it lines up with the word of God.

If you cannot line it up....trash it. Get rid of it.

The last thing you need is unsubstantiated, humanistic, traditionalist fodder clouding up what is truth.

Dig into the word and find out what it says about what you have been taught. Don't take someones word for it. Find it out for yourself.

It will take a little work and research, but it is well worth the time.

Know what you believe and why you believe it.

Rule #8: Beware of the "Us 4 and No More" Club!

2010-09-15T11:00:00.000-05:00

I believe I am a charter member of this club. :)

The "Us 4 and No More" club is a sure fire way to suffer from a severe case church burn.

You may ask, 'what is this club that you speak of Jimmy?'...well...I am glad you asked.

The definition of the "Us 4 and No More" Club is where there are always the certain people that are called upon to do, to serve. Usually it is because said people can be counted upon to ALWAYS be there. No matter what day, what time, where or how.

Now please understand that this is not necessarily a bad thing, and it speaks highly to the character and commitment to those that do, BUT, if you are always one of the few that sacrifices your time and it takes away from your family....be careful!

It comes back to what was mentioned in Rule #5, you have to lead a balanced life.

There is such a thing as being so busy doing that you forget to just be!

We must have our priorities in line as stated in Rule #7;

Priority #1: God (Our first love)
Priority #2: Family (Set aside by God)
Priority #4: Work (We must provide/care for family)
Priority #5: Church (Source of encouragement)

Serving is a great thing. A thing to be commended and applauded. But don't forget to keep the above mentioned priorities in line.

Rule #7: Keep Your Priorities in Line

2010-09-15T06:53:00.000-05:00

Keeping ones priorities in line is essential to avoiding and surviving church burn.

In my humble opinion, these are the priorities listed in order of importance;

Priority #1: God (Our first love)
Priority #2: Family (Set aside by God)
Priority #4: Work (We must provide/care for family)
Priority #5: Church (Source of encouragement)

Please be careful and not mistake or blend Priority #1, with Priority #5. They hold separate and distinct positions in our lives.

Rule #6: Surround Yourself With Positive, Encouraging People

2010-09-13T17:21:00.000-05:00

There is nothing worse than being around a negative person.

They will suck the life right out of you.

This is especially true when you are suffering from severe church burn.

The last thing you need is some Negative Nelly constantly bombarding your already deficient psyche with their acid laced spew of yuck! GET AWAY FROM THEM QUICK, before you start spewing the same yuck and give root to bitterness. That will only end in disaster.

Surround yourself with people who you know love you for you...not what you can do for them. People who will speak good things to you and about you. People who will challenge you. People who genuinely care for you.

Rule #5: Church Cannot/Must Not Be Your Only Social Connection

2010-09-11T11:49:00.000-05:00

If you're church is your only social connection...you are headed down a slippery slope.

If you are continually at church doing or being involved, you stand a great chance of suffering from burn-out. If you are always the one that is there for every event, every cleaning day, every work day, every outreach, and do nothing outside of those church sponsored events....trouble could be brewing. You could be an official member of the "Us 4 and No More" Club, and you don't even know it. (more on that club later)

I'm not saying don't be involved, or not to serve. I'm saying don't make the church your entire center of life. That spot is reserved for your relationship with God (refer to Rule #1). And that relationship should not be based on how much you do for your church. If it is...that's a whole other problem.

It is imperative that you live a balanced life with social interaction other than your church or church work events, to avoid or recover from church burn out.

Spend time with your spouse, your family, or some good friends away from the church spectrum. Go outside and throw something on the grille, (it's very therapeutic...well for me at least) invite friends over and laugh..."A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones." Proverbs 17:22

Come on...get outside...let out a good laugh...and let those bones live baby! :)

Rule #4: Prayer is Essential

2010-09-10T21:46:00.000-05:00

The power of prayer is so often forgotten, but it is an essential part of any Christians faith walk...especially if you find yourself feeling burned out.

Being too busy to pray is too busy indeed. Take the time to talk to our beloved creator. It's the only way you will survive spiritually.

^"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." I Thessalonians 5:16-18

Rule #3: Don't Loose the HEART in the Quest for Excellence

2010-09-10T21:33:00.000-05:00

I have been witness to this happening on many an occasion. It may not have been the intent, but it was the inevitable outcome.

I have seen pastors, ministry workers, and volunteers alike get so caught up in trying to create, engineer or copy excellence so much that the heart of what needs to be communicated is lost, or worse still, the Holy Spirit has been squelched and not allowed to move freely. Thus, all being done in vain and usually accompanied by strife and discord.

This rule and rule #1 have a lot in common in the fact that Christ should always be the center of anything we do in ministry.

So remember....being best is not always better! Give the Holy Spirit room to work.

Rule #2: Don't Allow Bitterness to Destroy You

2010-09-10T20:26:00.000-05:00

Because it will.

A wise man once said that "As the love of money is the root of evil, so then bitterness is the beginning of destruction!"

That is great wisdom from a very wise man...ok...I'll stop tooting my own horn now! :)

The root of bitterness will get in and make a terrible mess of you. It will affect how you think, how you feel, it could even damage relationships, personal and spiritual.

"See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many." Hebrews 12:15

Rule #1: Put God Back in Center

2010-09-10T20:12:00.000-05:00

This is usually the primary cause of the Church Burn in the first place.

In most cases we have taken God from the center of our lives and replaced Him with the Church, or ministry. We have to make the distinction between God and ministry/church.

The church as an organization should NEVER be the center of our lives but a place of refreshing and encouragement. If it is no longer one of those 2 things and has become something else entirely, either check yourself and get it right or get out.

Put Christ back to Center in your life. Don't forget your first love! Revelations 2:3-5