Wow... an interesting cover article in this month's Christian Century about pornography. Here's a paragraph that struck me: "What makes a person vulnerable to pornography? Addiction is prevalent among people who have high-demand but low-structure jobs and who spend a great deal of time at their computers, initially for work-related reasons, but also for social connection and entertainment. He points to three elements that foster sexual addiction: loneliness, anger and boredom." Houston, we have a BIG problem... ADDED: September 20, 2007 at 7:15 AM by Todd Rhoades
COMMENTS: (3) |  | VIEWS: (1466) Reality Check… Are You Burning Out?

Pastorblog.com has a list of some symptoms that may lead down the road to burnout in ministry. I thought it was a great list (originated from David Yearick). Take a look at this list and see if you have any of the beginning signs of ministry burnout... ADDED: September 18, 2007 at 7:19 AM by Todd Rhoades
COMMENTS: (2) |  | VIEWS: (807) Divorce Isn’t That Big a Thing for Many Pastors These Days…

Hours after the Revs. Randy and Paula White announced their impending divorce last week, Christians began discussing how the evangelical power couple had come undone. It had, in fact, been a tough week for televangelist couples. The day before the White's revelation, Atlanta Bishop Thomas W. Weeks III alledgedly assaulted his estranged wife, evangelist Juanita Bynum, in a hotel parking lot. The couple had met to discuss reconciliation. But it turned violent when Weeks choked, kicked and threatened to kill his wife, police said. Both couples' histrionics - the Whites made their announcement from the pulpit of their Tampa church Aug. 23 - rocked the evangelical world and left many tongues wagging about the state of clerical marriage and the ability of divorced clerics to minister. In both relationships, each of the ministers had been divorced before. "The clergy is supposed to be setting an example for the other lay families," said Adair T. Lummis, a faculty associate at Hartford Seminary in Connecticut. "It looks strange to people." At Without Walls International Church, the Whites' megaministry, Randy White told members that he expected some in the congregation to leave because of their divorce. Indeed, a small exodus appears to have begun. But plenty of the church's 22,000 members say they will continue to support their pastors. "From my understanding, they've been through counseling for quite a long period of time, and if things don't work, they just don't work," said member Stewart Yoder, 45. "We have to forgive. ... My heart breaks, but God knows what is best." Patty Gray, a seven-year Without Walls member, says her support of the Whites won't waiver. ADDED: September 17, 2007 at 8:00 AM by Todd Rhoades
COMMENTS: (38) |  | VIEWS: (3056)

Ike Reighard has an interesting article posted over at Crosswalk.com on the different types of friends a pastor needs to cultivate.  He writes:  “Most pastors find themselves in an unhealthy relationship where their wife is their only friend and counselor. If a pastor continues to project his problems onto his wife, she will grow disillusioned and desperate to leave the ministry. I believe a pastor’s wife should be his best friend, but she should not be his only friend...”

Church consultant Sally Morgenthaler of Littleton, Colo., paints a grim picture of contemporary pastoring. As she sees it, the pressures bearing down on pastors are heading to a breaking point. She predicts more scandals in the church. "Our Western religion is not comfortable with [pastors] being human ... we're not comfortable with complexity," she said. On top of a historic expectation that pastors live up to an impossible standard, new U.S. realities have piled on: the megachurch ideal coupled with a celebrity culture, the increasing failure of small mainline Protestant churches and the decline of Christianity in the religious marketplace. Up until the 1980s, Morgenthaler said, a pastor could aspire to organizing a better church supper and keeping a congregation of 200 reasonably happy. Then came the megachurch movement. ADDED: March 05, 2007 at 5:53 AM by Todd Rhoades
COMMENTS: (2) |  | VIEWS: (1776) We’re Not Called To Quit!

Before you quit - make sure you've fulfilled God's call for the ministry you're in. The average tenure of a youth pastor these days is just over one year. More than 25% of those who leave a youth ministry position NEVER return (I have heard some say it’s higher). It’s not just youth ministry though. It’s aspiring pastors as well... ADDED: February 15, 2007 at 1:00 PM by Michael Kowalson
COMMENTS: (22) |  | VIEWS: (2002)