I had one of these moments earlier this evening. If I continue to think about it, I keep feeling this way. And if I think it about it to long, the picture would have been one of a man standing with his head to the wall...or a woman sitting on the floor with her head on her arms.

So much of what we think is the end of the world, isn't. Sure it feels like; sure, we know better...but the frustration, however minor it may be, will gain ground and consume more time and energy than it should if you allow it.  Let your frustration be minor. Don't give opportunity for it to take residence, gain footing and ultimately strength. Break the stronghold by not allowing it arrive there.

... is your past.

If Life, is handled and managed and discarded as it happens, (guard what is important; let go of what doesn't matter and advance forward) then you give the past opportunity to tag along until it is kicked the curb. The longer you wait, the bigger the monster becomes. It eats away at your future every day that it wakes up with you, as long as it is called today. It survives on the "in" box labeled "file later".

Once you realize what you have on your hands, it time. You can start today, by refusing to feed the monster. The situation won't change over night, but by refusing to allow current situations to carry over, you can begin to reverse the trend and eventually work towards breaking free.

For years, within the church, we have looked to "the next generation". That's not to say the current generation of pastors and church leaders is not effective or fulfilling their promise or calling. Many of them are effective and some continue to stay the course and fulfill their calling.

However, the current rate for pastor leaving the ministry is well over 1,000 per month. Not only is this dangerously alarming, but in the context of "the next generation" what are we doing to decrease this incredible rate of departure? What are we doing to support current leadership, so they become a legacy of great ministry and not a "I used to be..." line on a resume.

What I sense in my heart, are very simple and practical solutions to reverse this trend. Pastors are human, just like their congregations. Yet, somewhere between the pew and the pulpit, both parties forget this fact.

Pastors struggle with being real, in terms of how their marriage operates. Really...who likes admitting that you argued in the car on the way to church. It's one thing to for morning to start off that way, then put a smile on your face as greet your friends in the cafe. Try another if that's happened only an hour or two before stand in front of hundreds with a message of salvation.

Pastors struggle in their finances. Then go home frustrated wishing they could help the young family struggling to provide a Christmas for the kids. Multiply this a couple times over, if the church itself is behind on a couple of bills. Or property taxes.

A struggling youth pastor wants to put on an all-night New Year's eve party. The church is tight on cash, so the youth pastor works overtime at his secular job to pay for the party. His wife and he argue because he's not home with his kids for most of that month.

Children's pastors can't put on a successful vacation bible school because parents refuse to adjust vacation schedules so the event can be properly staffed.

A pastor watching with an overwhelming number of people struggling to find employment, but the church is in trouble. So while he's praying for your employment situation, he goes home on the job search, praying the same prayer....hoping he won't be competing for the same job he just prayed God would open up for you.

And the scenarios are endless. Are at least up to another 1495 per month! I know Pastors deal with real issues, and some are pretty heavy duty issues. Much like people inside and outside the church deal with and need professional or expert help with. Financial, Mental, Behavioral, Thought-patterns. But most of what helps me get through the day is what most pastors don't have.

People who stick around when life gets hard. People who help when life gets hard. People who pray through circumstances with you. People who when you say "this is what's going on" and we're letting you know so you can pray with us, not share with others. It's one thing for a pastor to be transparent. It another for transparency to happen and still have a congregation standing with you. The unknown of whether the congregation stands or runs is where pastors get stuck. I'm not 100% confident that that is always the case; just 100% confident that if I were a pastor, that's how I would feel. And for what it's worth, whenever someone in my life suggested that I should go into ministry,  I immediately tried to figure out how I would handle that 1st scenario....argue on the way to church, then preach?  No problem.  Right.

Pastor want successful ministries. But I would venture that part of their feeling like they have a successful ministry begins with them having a successful home-life. I can't imagine the frustration of having a child living a life far from God, while praying for hundreds of other people's kids and grand-kids. Thankful for your break-through. Sleepless over their own.

7 Days. 7 Men. 10 churches. Outside of deacons and board members, if 7 men stood by their pastors, to pray over their lives, encourage them, offer support...basically just took care of them, as you would your best friend..."You sure you are doing okay?"...making genuine connections with your pastor and staff and their families, would go a long way into turning this situation around. Ladies, you can do the same for the women pastors at your church, and pastors' wives. Granted, you might not become best friends, hanging out with them all the time. But conversely, how many people on Facebook are constantly posting how blessed they are that someone wished them a happy birthday and posted it to their wall. "Wow, I have such great friends, thanks for all the birthday greetings." And a majority of them are from people they haven't seen in months or years, and yet keep in touch "online".

Yet we don't know that our pastor has a kid with some serious struggles. A marriage is on the rocks over money. Foreclosure of their home looms on the horizon. They fear the church could be next. And they're going on a job interview the day before they perform the wedding ceremony of your son or daughter.

If 7 men of 10 churches took a more active role...not in the church, necessarily, just a more connected relationship with pastors. 70 men in a community, to help carry the burden.

The world is going down hill fast. We don't have time to raise up and prepare and groom 1500 NEW pastors a month.  People need their church now more than ever and people who aren't in church will soon find themselves in a place where they will give it a try. The unsaved will be ready for church and the church will have closed it's doors; because it's people were out of touch. And the pastor couldn't do it alone.

I believe they are praying....crying...BRING ME 70!

ps: Staggering stats, from NY Times, August 2010 , over @ http://www.pastorburnout.com/pastor-burnout-statistics.html