Brutish Pastors Scatter Sheep

[HeavenlyOne]

Originally Posted by El Predicador

Sources polls in Focus on the Family, Ministries Today, Charisma Magazine, TNT Ministries, and other respected groups taken in 2007:

• 1,500 pastors leave the ministry permanently each month in America.
• 7,000 churches close each year in America.
• 50% of pastors’ marriages end in divorce.
• 70% of pastors continually battle depression.
• 80% of pastors and 85% of their spouses feel discouraged in their roles.
• 70% of pastors do not have a close friend, confidant, or mentor.
• 50% of pastors are so discouraged they would leave the ministry if they could, but have no other way to make a living.• .
• 80% of seminary graduates who enter ministry will leave the ministry within the first five years.

• 80% of pastors’ wives feel their husbands are overworked.
• 80% of the adult children of pastors sought professional help for depression.
• 90% of pastors said their training was inadequate for ministry.
• 85% of pastors report that their biggest problem is dealing with abstinent elders, deacons, worship leaders, worship teams, board members, and associate pastors.


• 90% of pastors said the hardest thing about ministry is uncooperative people.
• 70% of pastors are grossly underpaid.
• 80% of pastors’ wives feel unappreciated by the congregation.
• 90% of pastors said ministry was completely different from what they thought it would be.
• 80% of pastors’ wives feel pressured to be someone they are not and do things they are not called to do in the church.
• Over 50% of pastors’ wives feel that their husbands entering ministry was the most destructive thing to ever happen to their families.

I don't see how any of this is different than other leadership professions. Put 'police officer supervisor' in most of the above statements and the stats are the same. Put 'nursing supervisor' there and the same results are had. In fact, put any leadership occupation in the above statements and you will find those are true as well.

Pastors are people too, so why should their stats be better than everyone else's?