Mondays are often hard for young leaders. And for older leaders, too.
Ministers, pastors, and church planters pour themselves out for the cause of Christ over the weekend. They enter the weekend with great hope.
But criticisms, lack of visible results, and conflicts show up on Saturdays and Sundays. Self-doubts and guilt feelings pile up. Many weekends, a leader will self-diagnose and do the self-blame thing for an apparent failure to communicate with clarity and life-changing power.
All these disappointments combine to conspire against a leader's hope.
The Old Testament prophet, Jeremiah, had a lack of response to his ministry that was stunning. In Lamentations 3, he sings the ministry blues. Here's my paraphrase of Lamentations 3:1-20 with a little help from The Message and the NLT.
"Afflictions, troubles, and sufferings. That's me. Why? God seems so angry with me. He's led me into a ministry black hole. I signed up to serve God, but it seems like He's not helping me. Instead, He's stiff-arming me. I feel old before my time. My hopes are crushed. I am just... sad. I am boxed in. I feel trapped. I cry out and beg for help, but God doesn't answer my prayers. I try to move forward and my way is blocked. I try to walk a straight path and everything twists and turns. My ministry is a joke. I get no sympathy or support. People in other churches and ministries smirk at my struggles behind my back. Truth be told, I am bitter about it. It's hard to remember the good times in ministry. Everything I had hoped for from the Lord is lost. This is it. I'm finished. I give up."
That's extreme. But honestly, I've been there. Many times. Maybe you are there today.
How should leaders deal with the despair of Monday morning ministry blues? Jeremiah's tune changes in Lamentations 3. He gives us three strategies for overcoming the funk leaders find themselves in on Monday mornings.
1. Think.
Remember that God's steadfast love never ceases. "But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness" (Lamentations 3:21-23). Our ministry struggles are not signs that His love for us has diminished. His reasons for our struggles do not include a lack of love for us. He's doing something we cannot see. We think about His nature and character toward His children. It's love. We want Him more than we want His blessing on our ministry. Think! Isn't His love for us enough?
2. Preach.
We have to be experts in preaching the truth to ourselves. “'The Lord is my portion,' says my soul, 'therefore I will hope in Him'” (Lamentations 3:24). We tell ourselves, "I have God. He's my all in all. He's my inheritance. And He's enough. I don't need ministry success. I need Him and I have Him. My hope is in Him not in visible ministry results!"
3. Wait.
We want things to happen quickly, now, yesterday! But God says, "Wait!" "The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord" (Lamentations 3:25-26). Why does He want us to wait? Maybe ministry success that comes too easily or too quickly would lead us to make an idol out of the work of the Lord. He wants us to trust Him to do things in a way that will bring Him the most glory. And He wants us to want Him and His salvation more than we want the accolades of visible ministry results. So, we wait.
Think with gratitude about His unfailing love for you that was proven at the cross. Preach to yourself about how His value is infinitely greater than visible results. Don't try to make something happen by your own energy; instead, wait on Him to do what only He can do.
And as you think, preach, and wait, you will watch your hope grow. You'll be ready soon to carry your cross as you serve your King.
Question: So, how do you deal with the Monday morning ministry blues?
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