Should I Stay Or Should I Go? The Clash of Ministry Calling Versus Contentment

Most of us don’t begin a new ministry position believing we’ll only stay for a few years. We have noble intentions to plant our lives for the long haul. But then Covid hits and we get beaten up from one side or the other and sometimes both sides at the same time. Or, we get bored, our leadership gets stale, our congregation gets restless, and we get busy looking for another place of ministry.

Forced termination reminds us that the choice to stay is not always ours to make. In fact, several years ago, Christianity Today published an article indicating that nearly one-fourth of all active ministers have been forced out at some point in their ministry. But when staying or going is within our control, then we should be asking some fundamental calling vs. contentment questions to help us discern if we should stay or if we should go.

• Has God released me from my call here?

Another place of ministry may seem more convenient, appealing, challenging, fulfilling, and rewarding. But until God releases you to go there, stay and rededicate your focus and energy here. Instead of constantly dreaming about there, restart every morning like it is your very first morning here.

• Am I running from something here?

God didn’t promise that you’d always be happy, revered, loved, appreciated, or followed. So, if you are running from unresolved ministry or relational dissatisfaction and dysfunction here, what makes you think it won’t follow you there?

• Am I running to something there?

If you are interested in another ministry just because it’s bigger, better, more prestigious, or prominent, then your motivation might be ego instead of calling. If greener grass or rungs up the ladder is the new you are running to, then you’ll inevitably be disappointed and so will they.

• How might a move there impact my family?

Only considering your own desires, needs, and wants without recognizing how it might impact your family is not a calling, it is conceit. If your ministry frequently moves your children away from their friends and foundations, then how can you expect them to even like church when they are no longer required to attend?

• When it’s time to go there, am I ready to leave here well?

If you go out swinging when you leave here, then it will always follow you there. Leave, instead, with Ephesians 4:29 on your lips: “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”

God’s calling is a personal invitation to carry out a unique and sometimes difficult task. And it’s a strong inner impulse prompted by conviction, that is not always convenient. So, instead of focusing on ministry job placement sites when ministry gets hard, we should keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. It’s a discipline that is not always easy but it produces a harvest of righteousness when we are trained by it (Heb 12:2, 11).

This article first appeared on David’s blog, WorshipEvaluation.com. It is reposted here with permission.