Church Leadership Podcast
Church Leadership Podcast
Episode 20 - Mark & Andy on Discouragement
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In this week’s episode, Mark and Andy have a conversation about something we all deal with: discouragement. If you lead in the local church, you have faced let downs and disappointment. As you listen, you’ll be challenged to carefully evaluate personal and relational issues all of us face. Also, Mark and Andy will give you some practical ways to avoid and deal with discouragement from their own personal experiences and insight from Scripture. We hope this conversation is helpful and encouraging!

Quotables

  • “And, there’s a saying in rodeo, when you’re a bull rider, It’s not if you get hurt, but when and how bad. And that can definitely be applied to Church… How that applies to us is very similar. It’s not if you get discouraged or hurt, but it’s when and how bad, and sometimes even how often.”

  • “That was me for a long time in ministry. My identity was based on my success, or failure, or my perceived effectiveness in ministry… I built my identity around that, which that’s not who I am.”
  • “When people offer you criticism, and they don’t offer you help, that’s criticism you have to be really, really careful with.”
  • “Disappointments and discouragement often comes when reality and wrong expectations collide.”
  • “If you don’t have conflict at all ever in any ministry, I’m just gonna tell you something’s wrong. That’s a red flag. That means you’re not dealing with people and you’re not honest with the people… Conflict is inevitable, but drama is a choice.”

  • “Moral failure and burnout are becoming more and more common in ministry, and I think those things are related a lot to discouragement.”
  • “Make sure you protect that time with your family. Spend some time away from ministry, even if you’re a volunteer, spend time away from ministry with your family. Recharge yourself, and that brings us to another item, too. Make sure you are getting rest.”
  • “Remember, this is not the end of your story. God’s not finished writing the story of your life. He’s not finished writing the story of history. And so, this is just one chapter in the bigger story.”
  • “Do not believe the lie that ministry is easy. It is hard. If you want to do something easy, go sell ice cream.”
  • “Thank you. It is worth it. It’s making an impact in someone’s life for the Kingdom. Even if you don’t see it, it is making a difference.”