Burnout among Christian ministers isn't new. All the talk about it may be new, but the reality of it has been around a long time. Finding a name for it won't solve the problems, but it has a way of making us more aware of the problems. And awareness could be the first step back toward the land of the living.

The author looks at the many dimensions of burnout: physical, emotional, spiritual, social. The author's is not a cool, detached view: "I have faced the problem personally. I expect to face the problem again in the last twenty-five years of my ministry. I believe I have some handles to face this problem with determination and responsibility. I have spent the last fifteen years dealing with ministers who, like me, have faced, and are facing the problem of ministerial burnout. In a way, this book is a pilgrimage. Like John Bunyan, I hope there is progress in my pilgrimage. I am not writing in judgement of the minister who is facing the problem of burnout. I am writing in hopes that together, we can find ways to deal with it redemptively. (From the Introduction)