Surviving Ministry

Being a pastor has its rewards and pleasures. But churches can be unsafe places. They are filled with broken, imperfect people. Many ministers of the gospel walk into a church naive about the potential hazards of their vocation. They are vulnerable to difficult people, unresolved conflict, incompatible visions, hidden agendas, mission drift, and sin--their own and that of others. Other pastors feel trapped in a ministry hurricane and don't know what to do. They feel like failures. They're thinking about leaving the ministry. They are looking for help and hope--not from an ""expert"" detached from the real world of ministry--but from someone who has suffered through church hurricanes and lived to share the story. Moreover, they need to know they are not alone. Surviving Ministry: How to Weather the Storms of Church Leadership includes the author's own story as well as true stories from other pastors who have been in the eye of the hurricane. Discouraged ministers looking for biblical, practical, gospel-centered advice for storm proofing their churches, homes, and hearts have found a friend. Surviving Ministry will equip them to stay resilient before, during, and after seasons of difficulty. ""Surviving Ministry could be renamed Thriving Ministry, but that would defeat the purpose of this compelling book about the significant challenges, heartbreaks, blessings, pains, joys, good moments, and will-this-never-end hard seasons that are the reality of pastoral ministry. Mike Osborne--in sharp, sometimes humorous, but unfailingly humble, honest, and helpful prose--speaks the truth in love. [This book] is a must-read for pastors, seminarians, congregational leaders, and laity."" --Robbie Castleman, Author, Parenting in the Pew and Story-Shaped Worship; Professor of Theology; Pastor's wife ""Mike Osborne brings a wealth of pastoral experience and personal transparency to this discussion of ministry 'survival.' Even more, he brings a love for Christ and his church that makes these tales of church 'hurricanes' wise tools for serving, as well as surviving, the ministry."" --Bryan Chapell, Pastor, Grace Presbyterian Church, Peoria, IL Michael E. Osborne is Associate Pastor at University Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Orlando, Florida. His thirty years in ministry have also included pastorates in Missouri and South Carolina. He writes a blog for pastors called ""Surviving Ministry: Encouragement for Joyfully Persevering as a Church Leader"" (survivingministry.com).