Fail : Finding Hope And Grace In The Midst Of Ministry Failure

Introduction: The F-Word

Part 1: Unlearning Success
1 Failure: The Trigger Of Our Biggest Fears
2 Success: The Golden Calf Of The American Church
3 Faithfulness: Redefining The Metric Of Ministry

Part 2: Learning Failure
4 Shame: The Swampland Of The Soul
5 Loneliness: The Temptation To Wear Our Masks
6 Wounds: Shattered Dreams, Grief And Mourning

Part 3: Embracing Failure
7 Wilderness: Stumbling With Jesus In The Wasteland
8 Recovery: The Excruciating Process Of Letting Go
with Steve Burrell
9 Reentry: Learning To Reenter The Atmosphere
with Steve Burrell

Part 4: The Way Forward
10 Acceptance: A Kiss From God On Our Bruises
11 Rhythms: Restorative Practices For The Way Forward
Epilogue: A Different F-Word: The Beautiful Mess Of Freedom

Acknowledgments
Appendix 1: Recommended Resources
Appendix 2: Guiding Questions For Pastors And Leaders
Notes
Bibliography

Additional Info
Rejection. Betrayal. Shame. Failure. “I thought God had called me to plant this church. Why did we have to shut our doors after only three years?” “I was at my breaking point. Then I got the news that our nine-year-old daughter had leukemia. I would have quit ministry forever, but I had no other employable skills.” “False accusations were made against me and my family, wrecking our reputation permanently and forcing us to leave not only the church, but move out of the area.” “I’ve served my church for the past 27 years and I’ve grown that church from 150 to 24 people.” What do we do when we’ve failed? Some ministries are shipwrecked by moral failures like affairs or embezzlement. But for most of us, the sense of failure is more ordinary: disillusionment, inadequacy, declining budgets, poor decisions, opposition, depression, burnout. Many are deeply broken and wounded, and we come to doubt that God has any use for us. J.R. Briggs, founder of the Epic Fail Pastors Conference, knows what failure feels like. He has listened to pastors who were busted in a prostitution sting or found themselves homeless when ejected from ministry. With candid vulnerability, Briggs explores the landscape of failure, how it devastates us and how it transforms us. Without offering pat answers or quick fixes, he challenges our cultural expectations of success and gives us permission to grieve our losses. Somehow, in the midst of our pain, we are better positioned to receive the grace of healing and restoration. You are not alone. And God is not finished with you yet. Find here hope for the journey through the wildnerness.