Burnout is an opportunity
Psychologists say that stress can have disillusion, self-deprecation, and cynicism when it exceeds the threshold. There's an article that summarizes the seven signaling signs of stress (Internet): (1) He considers himself to be indispensable, (2) He tries to do too many things and has not time to deal with important things (3) He has constant pressure on himself, (4) He feels uneasiness that he is always behind and is not the best, (5) He habitually sits long while he is working, (6) He feels guilty when he gets home early, and (7) He takes his worries home. If we ignore these danger signals and continue working then we will eventually be burnout. What is burnout? Burnout is a feeling of fatigue and asthenia throughout the emotional, physical, and social life, literally devoid of power and energy. When a pastor gets exhausted and burnout, he loses his motivation for ministry and causes physical illness and conflict between husband and wife. How many ministers are suffering from this burnout now?
In 1 Kings 19:1-14, we see the prophet Elijah who is burnout. After the victory against 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah on the Mount Carmel (1 Kgs. 18), Elijah ran away in fear because Queen Jezebel, the wife of King Ahab, threatened to kill him (19:2-3). And he himself went into the desert and prayed that he might die: “I have had enough … Take my life” (v. 4). In this image of Elijah who prayed for his own death, we can no longer see Elijah on Mount Carmel. As I see this Elijah, I thought about four symptoms of burnout:
The first symptom of burnout is a fear.
Prophet Elijah was afraid when he received the message of the threat from Queen Jezebel (1 Kgs. 19:2-3). This image of Elijah is in stark contrast to the image of Elijah in 1 Kings 18. Elijah, who received the Word of the Lord and boldly went to present himself to Ahab (18:1-2) ran away for his life when he was threatened by Ahab’s wife Queen Jezebel (19:2-3). Elijah was afraid. He was afraid of death. So he fled for his own life (v. 3).
This first burnout of Elijah appeared after the great victory on Mount Carmel. When I meditate on this fact, I thought about devoting myself in keeping God’s grace that I received from the Lord. If we don’t keep our heart after receiving God’s grace, then we will be at risk of being tempted and sin against God. Also we will be like Elijah running away from our fearful situations. We will avoid or escape our problems.
The second symptom of burnout is despair.
Prophet Elijah fled and came to Beersheba in Judah, where he left his servants there while he himself went a day’s journey into the desert (vv. 3-4). And in the desert, he sat down under a broom tree and prayed: “"I have had enough, LORD … Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors” (v. 4). How disappointed and discouraged that he petition to die? He prayed to God, "I have had enough, Lord", which means "It is enough" (NASB). Elijah was no longer able to minister as a prophet. He was exhausted and depressed and fell to the ground and begs God to take his life.
For the minister, disappointment or despair is truly dangerous. However, I also think that it cannot be avoided for some reason. I am sure all ministers have experience disappointment and despair at least once in their ministries. But I cannot understand Elijah’s burnout to the point of asking God for his own death since I have not yet experienced it personally. However, I expect that I will experience despair like Elijah at least once in my future ministry.
The third symptom of burnout is the weakness of the physical body.
When Prophet Elijah went into the wilderness himself and was sleeping under the broom tree, an angel touched him and woke him up and said "Get up and eat" (v.5). And the angel gave Elijah a cake of bread baked over hot coals and a jar of water (v. 6). Elijah ate the bread and drank the water and laid down again (v. 6). After that, the angel came back a second time and touched Elijah and said “Get up and eat” (v. 7). This shows that Elijah was exhausted physically. So he got up and ate and drank. He was strengthened by that food (v. 8).
Many pastors are physically tired and exhausted. And they are suffering from many kinds of diseases. As a result, they cannot but to lay down their ministries for a while. When we think about them, we can understand little bit why Elijah was physically exhausted from burnout.
The fourth symptom of burnout is extreme loneliness.
After Prophet Elijah ate and drank that were supplied by the angel, he gained strength and traveled 40 days and 40 nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God (v. 8). There he went into a cave and talked to God. Then he repeated this to God two times: “I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too” (vv. 10, 14). Elijah told God that the Israelites killed all the prophets of the Lord and he was the only one left. When I thought about this, I felt like Elijah blaming God in extreme loneliness. When Elijah was alone in the cave in Horeb, he seems to have had extreme loneliness.
So what should we do about our burnout?
First, we must go into the desert.
Look at 1 Kings 19: 4a – “while he himself went a day's journey into the desert. ….” When we are burnout, we must go into our own desert where we can remain silent before God alone. We need to put down our ministries too. We should not be too busy to work like Martha. We need to leave a bit of a complicated living environment and go to a quiet place. We need time and space alone. We must stop everything and go quietly before the Lord and have time to meditate on the Word of God and pray to Him.
Second, we need physical rest.
Look at 1 Kings 19:5-7: “Then he lay down under the tree and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, "Get up and eat. He looked around, and there by his head was a cake of bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again. The angel of the LORD came back a second time and touched him and said, "Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” We need to know when and how to rest in order to prevent the weakness of our bodies which is one of the signs of burnout. To those work-oriented ministers like Martha, resting can be a pain in itself. But we must lay down our work like Mary and sit quietly before Jesus to hear His voice. And when we have to sleep, we should sleep. How many ministers are physically tired because they cannot get enough sleep, so their body and mind are sick? Like Elijah, we need to go into our own desert and sleep. And we should eat well. We must be faithful in taking care of our health care as God’s stewards for the glory of God. We must strive not to offer the sick body to the Lord. Of course, as the time goes on, our physical bodies will become more and more fragile, but we still need to take care our bodies as much as we can and live well for the glory of the Lord.
Third, we must listen to God's gentle whisper.
Look at 1 Kings 19:12 – “After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.” Prophet Elijah was physically strengthened and went to Horeb, the mountain of God (v. 8) and heard the God's gentle whisper (v. 12). We must go into our own desert and quietly stay in the presence of God. And we need to listen to the voice of the Lord in the midst of meditation of His Word and prayer. There is no joy except the voice of the Lord. We must hear the voice of the Lord and rise again to fulfill His mission.
A righteous man falls seven times, and rises again (Prov. 24:16). The reason is that although we are burnout and fallen, the Lord will raise us up again. We must get up and move forward. When we fall, the Lord will raise us up again. Even though we may be afraid, discouraged and lonely, the Lord will raise us up again. Let’s go into our own desert by ourselves and listen to the Lord’s gentle whisper as we have our physical rest so that we may be recharged and fulfill the Lord’s mission wholeheartedly. Victory!
Wanting to pursue the spirituality of the wilderness,
Pastor James Kim