One of the hardest things I do in ministry is interact with those who are no longer in ministry, but wish they were. They’ve been derailed. They messed up and got caught or the guilt got the best of them. In my experience, it usually takes the first of these for the truth to be known.
You should first know that I’m huge on applying grace, but the reality is that we lose good, effective ministry leaders because they begin to make dumb mistakes. From watching this process over the years, there appear to be some common reasons this occurs. My purpose of this post is to expose some of them, hopefully to catch some before its too late. Do any of these apply to you?
Here are the 5 most common derailments in ministry leadership:
Thinking it couldn’t happen to me – It can. It can. It can.
Refusing to listen to others – In my experience, God will attempt to rescue those in jeopardy. Refusing to listen dismisses the voice of God.
Overestimating personal value – Pride goes before the fall.
Underestimating the worth of others – Genuine humility is a protector of character.
The slow fade – It never starts at free fall. Allowing temptation to become little sin and little sin to become big sin. That’s where it always starts.
That’s what I’ve seen. Do you need the warning?
You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. No temptation has seized you except what’s common to man. When tempted, God provides a way out.
Perhaps this post is one way.
I’m praying for you. I’ll even be a safe place if needed, but I’m hopeful you’ll find one. Don’t be a statistic. Be an overcomer of temptation
