During the past decade, I've counseled scores of pastors whose lives could best be described by Datsun's phrase We are driven!

Remember the commercials? Little pickups airborne over crests of hills. 280-Z's eating curves. The advertising agency packed a world of meaning into those three words.

It may be a great slogan for an automaker, but it's a danger sign for pastors propelled by unrealistic expectations. Many ministers today are headed toward the mental, physical, and spiritual salvage yard because they expect too much of themselves. And most do not have a clear idea of the forces driving them to that tragic end.

Forces on the Accelerator

Part of the problem lies in the nature of the call to the ministry, a call to exemplary conduct as well as unselfish service. Yes, there are legitimate demands upon Christian leaders to model what they preach. Paul's instructions to Timothy are clear concerning the qualifications of elders and deacons. Yet some pastors take these scriptural foundations ...