"Should I Quit the Ministry?"

It is a question that all pastors and/or ministers have asked at one point or another. What causes us to pose this question? There are three possible answers: 1) We no longer desire to pastor; 2) We are selfish; and 3) We desire to do something else instead of pastoring.

1 Timothy 3:1

The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task.

1) We want to quit because we no longer desire to pastor

If you no longer desire to pastor, you must make sure that your reasoning is not selfish. For example, do you desire to pastor when everything is going well? If you were William Carey, would you have still served the Lord in India after the first six years with no conversions? It took seven years for Mr. Carey to witness fruit from his labors. His desire was great for God's enemies that were yet valuable in His image. If you are not a fair-weather pastor, and you legitimately no longer desire to pastor, then you must ask yourself what you do desire to do. Work is a creation mandate, and you should desire some form of it.

2) We are selfish.

This sin is probably the largest reason why pastors leave the ministry and why they leave churches for other churches as well. We are often a bunch of whiners. We mutter "our people do not appreciate me," "No one is being saved," "my ministry is not growing," "I do not make enough money," "Ministry is too hard," "My people will not follow my leadership," etc. All I can say is: Quit being a baby, suck it up, and get up and enjoy the blessing you have in front of you. God in His sovereignty has given you the flock in front of you so that you would labor in order to present them to the Lord one day as His spotless bride. Do not take this ministry lightly; after all, your value does not hinge on them, but based on God's grace appropriated to you through the finished work of Christ. They cannot change this wonderful truth; so, get up and enjoy the pleasure of being involved in divine ministry.

3) We desire to do something else instead of pastoring.

If there is something else vocationally that you had rather do than pastoring, and you are naturally gifted to do it, then leave the ministry. If your desire is to glorify God through another vocation, and you are not eat up with leading God's people to holiness through obedience to Christ, then feel free to leave. The mentality that "once you're a pastor, you're always a pastor," simply is not a biblical concept. Pastoring is not a holier vocation than any other work. We are all in a sense "called" to some vocation; and you can equally bring glory to God in another vocation carried out for God's glory.

I realize that these three thoughts are not mystical or emotional in nature. They are purposely reasonable reactions to struggles in ministry. It is tempting to quit; it is tempting to be selfish. Do not fall for such a reality; for in more cases than not, you are no better than the people you are complaining about. See them through Christ's eyes. Love them based on how much Jesus loves them. Don't you want to see the wicked professed Christians in your congregation stand before Christ one day dressed in His righteous? Continue laboring in order to purify the bride with His Word.

Onward Christian soldiers!

What are your thoughts concerning this issue? Is there anything else that you would add to this list?