Whether you are pastoring bivocationally like me, or full time as I did for 27 years, the weight of a pastor’s call has grown even heavier over the last couple of years. Here are five questions every pastor needs to ask right now to assess their condition amid the challenges of ministry.

As a parent to two littles, it can be easy to become overwhelmed by—well, any number of things. Finding the perfect traditions to ensure everyone focuses on Christ this year can feel like another item on the to-do list, another way we’re failing to live up as parents, Christians, and ministers of the gospel. To make it better this year, our little family is trying to keep the focus on simple and small ways to weave Christmas traditions into our everyday lives.

Over the past several months of counseling and conversations with men and women in ministry, there is a very common theme that continues to surface. One particular sentiment is voiced in almost every conversation—”I’m tired.” Aren’t we all?

To not be tired in a season like this would almost be, un-human.

Las estadísticas son horribles y las historias desgarradoras. Si algo no cambia, la iglesia en los Estados Unidos enfrentará desafíos sin precedentes el próximo año y muchas congregaciones locales no sobrevivirán. ¿Cuál es la tragedia? La creciente realización de que un porcentaje significativo de pastores están considerando dejar sus iglesias.

People who pray for their pastors usually say they ask the Lord to bless sermon preparation—and for good reason. The Sunday sermon is the best opportunity to make a lasting difference in the lives of the most people. Yet there are many other reasons to intercede on behalf of the shepherds of the Lord’s congregation. Here are ten often-overlooked ways to pray for pastors.

This week, we're featuring an excellent conversation from the Replant Bootcamp Podcast. Dr. James Hawkins discusses how to stay emotionally healthy during a time of crisis. With the heaviness of so many current events, we could all use Dr. Hawkins’ practical advice on how to develop and maintain our emotional health.

Thanks to technology and the fallout of COVID-19, many people are working remotely these days. Working from home has its highs and lows. It allows you to better integrate the different aspects of your life. It’s also an opportunity for one part of your life to invade and choke out your other healthy habits and responsibilities. Done right, however, you can flourish as a whole person employed at a myriad of different things. Here are six ways to succeed when working from home.

This come-and-see model of ministry we’ve developed over the past 100 years has produced several generations of Christians who assume church is about them, for them, and because of them. So they shop around.

But what if we pastors are only sleeping in the bed we’ve made for ourselves? What if we have a consumer-driven Christian culture because we’ve been selling a product instead of embodying a mission?

“Sweetie,” my husband gently began. “This is an intervention.”

In his most compassionate voice, Craig began describing my life—my job and the amount of travel it required, my responsibilities in raising our teenaged kids, my ministry as a pastor’s wife, my efforts to be a good friend and a good daughter. “This is just not sustainable,” he said. “I’m not upset with you, but something has to change.”

Waves of inadequacy and shame washed over me. I was trying so hard to do it all. People depended on me. How could I stop?