I am adding some spiritual perspective to my last two posts, to offer some counter-balance, as to how one responds -- if here or there one sees psychological problems in ministry. The fact is that some of the greatest men and women of God, both in the Bible and in the Church, had significant
psychological problems. Elijah is a well known example in the Bible,
while in the Church there are many: Bunyan, Watts, Spurgeon, and so on.
I think the key
question in such cases is: is this person called by
God? We do not ask first whether he or she is a broken reed -- or worse, write them off because
they are. OBSERVATION: I think that there are three potential advantages to psychological or emotional weakness in
ministry: such a minister may better identify with his or her people's pain, he or she may have gained greater wisdom to minister, and we are told that Christ's power is made
perfect in weakness. Paul wrote: "For the sake of Christ, I delight in weaknesses." I believe that these weaknesses would include physical, emotional, and psychological weaknesses.
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