pray...

Do you realize ??? that:

97% of pastors have been betrayed, falsely accused or hurt by their trusted friends.

70% of pastors battle depression.

7,000 churches close each year.

1,500 pastors quit each month.

10% will retire a pastor.

80% of pastors feel discouraged.

94% of pastor’s families feel the pressure of the ministry.

78% of pastors have no close friends.

90% of pastors report working 55-75 hours per week.

PRAY for your pastor!

These numbers are hard to process, and these percentages are heartbreaking, and these circumstances are real, and this list is a devastating tragedy. Pastors aren’t immune to the grief, and the loneliness, and the scrutiny, and the anguish, and the suffering, and the bitterness, and the pain, and the fear that may affect their lives. And, don’t forget the pastors’ wives and the pastors’ children. PRAY for the family! PRAY for your pastor! Faithfully PRAY!

And yet, with all of a pastors’ pressure, problems, perplexities, and stress, I believe many just want the church to PRAY!

Now rewind and take a short look at Paul’s life:  

And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.  Ephesians 6:19 NLT

And yet, with all Paul’s pressure, problems, perplexities, and stress, all he asked for from the church was PRAYER!

The following verses are similar to the discouraging statistics of pastors today:

23   Are they servants of Christ? I know I sound like a madman, but I have served him far more! I have worked harder, been put in prison more often, been whipped times without number, and faced death again and again.

24   Five different times the Jewish leaders gave me thirty-nine lashes.

25   Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked.     Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea.

26   I have traveled on many long journeys. I have faced danger from rivers and from       robbers. I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the Gentiles. I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be believers but are not.

27   I have worked hard and long, enduring many sleepless nights. I have been hungry and thirsty and have often gone without food. I have shivered in the cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm.  2 Corinthians 11:23-27 NLT

And yet, with all Paul’s pressure, problems, perplexities, and stress, all he asked of the church was PRAYER!