Mad Church Disease has been burning up the blogosphere, at least the little section that I read. (See links below)
This is a site focused on the phenomena of burnout for those that are in ministry. The site includes a survey for those in ministry, spouses of those in ministry, and volunteers in ministry. It is also a preview for an upcoming book. I have taken the survey for those in ministry and found the questions overall to be good. Will you take the survey?
At Resurrection, there has been specific steps taken over the last few years to help guard against burnout and to take care of the staff. Having only been here one year, I cannot comment on the change that has taken place in Resurrection as a working environment. However, I can say that in the year that I have been here I have experienced a great deal of support and care to guard against burnout and make sure that I am protecting my personal time.
Resurrection tends to be a high performance environment and as such there is a particular need to guard against overwork. I seen this need in my own life. In just over one year in ministry, I have felt pretty good about keeping the balance of personal time with God, home life, relaxation and church responsibilities. But I know that maintaining this balance will continue to take constant attention.
Links: Swerve, Church Relevance, Church Marketing Sucks
Rev. Andrew Conard 
6 replies on “Mad Church Disease”
Thanks for the link! I just moved from KC about a year and a half ago after spending 4 years there (3 of which at a local church in Shawnee – now Lenexa).
But yep, thanks for the link! 🙂
Anne
Anne – Thanks for the comment and for making the KC connection!
I wish the Korean Community had lots of resources to do studies like this.
I speak from the context I’m familiar with, and in the Korean church, there is always a high burnout rate.
In 1994, there were 10 korean students that graduated from Wesley. out of the 10, only 2 serve in a korean church. the rest really don’t want anything to do with the korean church, and 2 are out of the ministry altogether.
And right now, I’m struggling to find that balance that many of my peers seem to have outside the Korean church. I refuse to be over worked and am adamant and aggressive in trying to keep my Sabbaths and vacations, but I know i will soon start feeling backlash and resentment from the church and the pastor. I mean, here’s the senior pastor who never takes a vacation, and here’s the young 26 year old demanding his vacation time. *shrug* Something has to give… but it won’t, and another 2nd generation Korean will leave the immigration church.
wow, i just meant to say, thanks for the link, but i just totally vented on your comment box. sorry. =)
I’m interested in the results when the book comes out.
Joseph – Thanks for your honesty and openness in response. Balance is a constant struggle. Stand strong on the vacation, friend!
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