There is an airline that had commercials showing people in awkward situations and then asks, “wanna’ get away?” The Awana ministry year for many is now well underway. Everyone is getting in the groove of things and things are going well. What people don’t tell you at those conferences and trainings is that already the volunteers that you spent time recruiting are considering whether they will return next year. You may also be considering your future in your current ministry position.
There is a vast difference in stats* regarding how many pastors leave the ministry each month. The numbers go from 250 month to 1,500+ per month. There are several reasons for the variance in these numbers and I would tend to lean toward the higher end being more accurate as to the number of pastors who leave the ministry. Now add on top of that the many volunteers who walk away from ministry (I am not aware of any stats on that) and the numbers could be staggering. Numbers can be used to indicate a mass exodus from the ministry, but the truth is that there are many faithful servants serving faithfully throughout their lives in paid and volunteer positions.
Trisha Peach, whom I have met at children’s ministry conferences, recently wrote a book entitled, Why We Quit: The Real Reasons Why Pastors Leave Ministry Forever, plus Proven Strategies to Keep You in Ministry for the Long Haul. In this book Trisha addresses not only why people leave the ministry for life, but generally why people leave the ministry where they are serving. Some reasons are because of personal indiscretion which often makes the news and does severe damage to the church, both locally and globally, but most are for other reasons which Trisha shares clearly from her personal experiences and the experiences of others. Many of the things which she shared I have experienced in my life and ministry as I have left ministry positions (both volunteer and paid) and I am sure that you will face as well.
Trisha clearly presents ways to prevent the awkward resignation and how to be faithful in the calling that God has given to you, from the initial interview process to regular things we should be doing to be able to minister for the long haul. This is book, while not specifically written for Awana leaders, has many insightful thoughts to help you stay strong in your ministry and as you recruit others to serve alongside of you.
For convenience, below is a link to Amazon for this book as well as other books that Trisha has written which may be an asset to you and your ministry.
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* Source Links for stats referenced:
– Statistics in the Ministry / Clarification and Discussion Concerning Our Statistics
– Pastors are not quitting in droves
