50% Of The Local Church Pastors I’ve Been Praying For Are No Longer Pastoring Local Churches
How could things be different if pastors were provided with care that is proactive and preventative before they need care that is reactive and remedial?
My daily prayer list recently hit a sobering tipping point—one I couldn’t ignore, and one that reflects a deeper crisis among pastors.
Section 1 of my prayer list, labelled “Personal,” includes my wife, our daughters, parents, siblings, our church, and our Lead Pastor. Section 2 is “People” and includes friends who have asked for prayer. Section 3 is “Couples” who need prayer. Section 4 is “Pastors” and includes men I have personally committed to pray for and stay in touch with.
Last week Section 4 reached a significant tipping point. This list once held two dozen names; now it contains just 12. What happened?
A few months ago, I began highlighting the pastors on my list who had left local church pastoral ministry. Those highlighted names became so numerous over the last year that I split the list into two columns. On the left is a list labelled “Pastors” but now there is a second column on the right labelled “Casualties.”
As of last week, the “Pastors” and “Casualties” lists are now exactly equal in length, reminding me again that the crisis of pastoral burnout, disillusionment, and forced exits from ministry cannot be ignored. This is far more than a name-listing exercise—it reflects a crisis of pastoral resilience unfolding in real-time.
Stories of Pastoral Exit
When I began praying for these pastors, most of them were pastoring local churches but now they no longer are. There are hard stories behind these 12 names that I'm obviously not at liberty to share in detail. Three left local churches to take on positions with their denominations or other ministries. We can all be thankful for this, and I don't count those guys as “casualties” in the same way, but I do count them as having left local church ministry - which is a loss, even if it is also a gain.
But generally, most of them were propelled out of the local church ministry by either church politics, burnout, or serious health issues arising from the stresses of ministry. Some are sure they want to pastor again while others are in a wilderness of unknowing. Some will likely never pastor again. Some have health issues that are serious enough to sideline them for an extended period even if they do want to pastor again. They’ve taken available employment while they try to heal and consider their futures.
This has been a source of prayerful grief and lament for me as I consider these stories in light of my own experiences of adversity in pastoring. These difficult passages are often walked alone at a time when the help of wise counsellors is sorely needed. The names on these lists are not statistics to me; they are real-life friends walking a difficult path.
Who’s Next?
I was not pleased to realize that as I continued to pray for my pastor friends, my mind kept returning to the question: "Who's next?" And how can I pray for him and support him so he’s not next?
I continue to pray that no more names will move from the left column to the right, but I suspect that some will. And if they do, they will not be left to fend for themselves in a wilderness of confusion and disappointment.
The reality is that this tipping point is not just representative of my personal prayer list but is more broadly characteristic of what is happening to pastors in Canada and the USA. This is confirmed both anecdotally and statistically, as many studies from Barna, Lifeway, and others have confirmed. This tipping point of pastoral resignations is broadly observable and the momentum is leaning in the wrong direction.
What Can Be Done?
If we look at the patterns of burnouts and resignations, we can see that pastors will generally “keep on keeping on” until they no longer can. Everything seems good and stable until it's suddenly not. There are many reasons for this.
In some cases, the shame associated with “quitting” or “giving up” causes pastors to persist in their positions far beyond their capacity to do so. The ramifications of this persistence escalate over time and a potential return to ministry becomes ever more distant.
I look at the pastors who've recently exited and wonder how things could have been different if they were provided with care that was proactive and preventative before they needed care that was reactive and remedial. (To be clear, reactive and remedial care is also good and much needed.)
But in addition to pulling the drowning bodies out of the water, we need to move upstream and prevent these crises before they happen. As I have stated before, this will require a cooperative effort between Bible colleges, theological seminaries, denominational leaders, church networks, elder teams/boards, and experienced and retired pastors.
Here’s a hard question: If you’re a pastor, could you be next? (If you’re a church member, could your pastor be next?)
The Shepherd’s Refuge
My contribution to these efforts is this ministry called The Shepherd’s Refuge. About a year ago I sensed God calling me to wrap up a 15-year pastoral assignment to establish a ministry that offers care, coaching, and connection to pastors and other ministry leaders. These articles often turn into ‘pitches’ for The Shepherd’s Refuge, which makes sense—I’m passionate about pastors and the church, and I believe this is God’s calling for me.
Stories of pastoral adversity shape The Shepherd’s Refuge as I seek God’s wisdom and direction. I have a burden for all types of pastors and I am passionate about offering care, coaching, and connection to them that is proactive, preventative, and personal.
If you are a pastor, pastor-to-be, or out-of-commission pastor, please contact me. I am happy to walk with you on the journey, offering prayer, wisdom, and insight based on God’s word and my experiences.
Are you a pastor who finds himself in a state of depletion, not knowing where to turn? Let’s talk. Follow this link to my contact page or click the button below.
Michael Krahn is a pastor, the husband of Anne Marie, and the father of Madeleine, Olivia, and Sophia. Make a connection on Facebook, X, or Instagram.