The week after my father passed, I returned home to St. Paul, Minnesota, to preside over several funerals. While guiding my congregation through their journey of grief and loss, I was barely holding myself together. My father had been a pastor for 40 years. I understood all too well the need to press on for the sake of my congregation, but I was falling apart. It was a godsend when a church leader suggested counseling.
Therapy sparked a question for me: How many other pastors and church leaders are emotionally and mentally struggling in silence while leading at the same time? The spark ignited a passion, leading me back to school to study emotional and mental health and ultimately inspiring the creation of The Upper Room’s newest program, The Center for Healing and Resilience.
According to a research study by the Fuller Institute of Church Growth, 70 percent of pastors report having a lower self-esteem now than when they entered ministry. Another church institute study shows that 50 percent of pastors feel so discouraged that they would leave their jobs today if they could. And yet another study shows that 33 percent of church leaders feel lonely and isolated, and a crippling 69 percent feel fatigued.
In 2022, The Upper Room formed The Center for Healing and Resilience. Since its launch, The Center has sought to disrupt the declining trend of clergy burnout by providing church leaders with effective tools and resources to support their mental and emotional health. To date, through in-person workshops and individualized coaching, The Center has worked with over 2,000 church leaders to talk boldly about burnout, grief, conflict, fatigue, and the stress of change. Leaders have learned mindfulness and somatic tools for mitigating trauma, and they have learned invaluable techniques for becoming aware of their own emotions. After attending one of the workshops, one leader from Virginia remarked, “I didn’t realize I hadn’t been breathing. I had stopped. This workshop helped me to breathe again; it helped me to get my voice back.”
Helping church leaders deal with burnout, loss, conflict, and trauma is difficult work; but it is sorely needed. We are called to take care of our shepherds as they are called to take care of their folks. You can play a role in this life-giving work by giving to The Upper Room Center for Healing and Resilience. With your support, we can expand our offerings and equip more church leaders with the latest tools and resources to support their emotional and mental health. With your help today, we can turn the tide of this traumatic tsunami of church-leader burnout. Thank you for your generosity.
Rev. Dr. Ronald Bell, II is the Director of The Center for Healing and Resilience at The Upper Room. You can learn more about the Center for Healing & Resilience and inquire about having Rev. Bell conduct a training for your church or community here.