When I was a young pastor, sometime in my first decade of service, I was acquainted with another pastor who had decades of experience under his belt and was serving a congregation in another town. It seems as if he was perpetually tired, and had little enthusiasm for trying anything new. He had lived the life of a solo pastor for decades, serving mid-sized congregations. His career had been successful, but there had been many nights of “on call” duty, many interruptions to family dinners, many times of working long hours in thankless tasks. The term we used in those days was “burned out.” It described him well. I remember thinking, and even saying to others, I promise not to become like him. I thought, at the time, that careful adherence to spiritual disciplines, regular attendance at continuing education events, a program of self-care and other things within the control of a professional pastor could prevent such from happening.

In those days, I knew little of how the effects of aging felt.

That was a long time ago. In that span of time I have been blessed with very good health. I have had plenty of energy and stamina for the work that I do. For the past twenty years I have served a congregation with a generous sabbatical policy that has provided me with periodic longer-term breaks for renewal. Furthermore, the nature of the pastoral ministry is continually changing. There are new and exciting adventures at almost every turn. I’ve been called upon to participate in the church’s music ministry in a variety of roles, I’ve led different styles and moods of worship, I’ve served as teacher in a variety of settings. More importantly, the parade of people with whom I serve is constantly changing. Babies are born, people come to the end of their life’s journeys, couples marry and some divorce, people come to the church filled with enthusiasm and participate in the life of the congregation and then move away from our community. Others participate for a while and then change their focus. Each pastoral situation in which I find myself has its own unique challenges and opportunities.

I’m not worried about burning out.

But I am aging. I rise with a few aches and pains from time to time. I have nights when I don’t sleep as well as I ought. I move a bit slower after a day of physical labor. I enjoy a nap when the opportunity presents itself.

The simple fact is that none of us will go on forever. We share a common mortality. Although none of us has the power to predict a particular day or time, we all operate with limits. Like the milk cartons in the store refrigerator, we each have a “Best if Sold by” date.

It appears, however, that the topic of when I should move on from this call as a pastor is not one with which the members of my congregation are eager to discuss with me. I’m fairly confident that the topic comes up when I’m not around, but when I try to discuss it with church leaders and friends, they often come up with lines like, “Oh, pastor, we love you. Don’t talk about retiring,” or “Let’s get this capital funds drive behind us before we bring up that subject,” or “You’re too young to retire.”


I have no desire to form a succession plan. I know that it is not in the best interests of the congregation for me to direct its planning for its next ministers. I understand that God will provide the leadership the church needs. I know that there are competent and talented leaders who are younger than I. I also have had such a good experience with our church’s search and call process to be confident that the Holy Spirit works through the procedures of the church and the matching of pastors and congregations can yield great connections and deep relationships. I trust allowing the process to work.

I also know that traditional dates don’t apply to my generation and to the times in which we live. There is nothing about reaching the age of 65 (an event that is still 3 years away for me) that means one has to retire. I know pastors who have capably served well into their seventies. And we are living longer than previous generations and have many more options for health care to extend our active working years.

Still, I love this congregation that I serve. I want what is best for it. I can imagine it with new leadership both in its clergy and in its laity. I remember reading a research project a while back that asked respondents, “Which pastor in your lifetime had the most impact on your spiritual development?” The answer in the largest percentage of cases was the pastor who was closest in age to the respondent. The young people in our congregation deserve that kind of close relationship with a pastor. And for some of them I more resemble their father or grandfather than a peer.

Fortunately, this isn’t a problem that I have to solve today. And it isn’t a problem that I have to solve alone. What I need most is patience for the church to engage in the conversation at the time that is right for the congregation.

In the meantime, I need to be serious about my spiritual disciplines to keep from burning out.

I exercise for endurance. When I can’t get outside, I have a static rowing machine. I log my time on that machine, which also doubles as time to think and listen to podcasts, some of which are inspirational. I keep introducing fresh practices into my spiritual disciplines so that I am not just repeating things I have done before, but learning new dimensions of faith. I try to be open to new possibilities and new directions each time I meet with a committee or group within the church.

Still, I can’t avoid watching for new and younger leaders whenever I gather with my colleagues and thinking about what might come next for the congregation that I love.

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