What did the Global Adventist Pastors’ Survey reveal?

The General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists commissioned a Global Adventist Pastors’ Survey (GAPS) to gather information on the experiences and perspectives of our pastors globally.¹ The research team was assisted by translators,² division executive secretaries and ministerial secretaries,³ and many others.⁴ Survey responses came in during 2022 and 2023, and by the end of the submission period, 12,380 Adventist pastors caring for one or more Adventist congregations had participated. The participants constitute more than 40 percent of all Adventist pastors currently serving in local churches around the world.⁵

The results of the GAPS showed that Adventist pastors who care for local churches share a great many experiences in common despite working in diverse cultures around the world. While most Adventist pastors report that they find real fulfillment in their work, some results from the survey raise matters of concern.

Finding fulfillment

Taken as a whole, the survey responses indicate that the great majority of Adventist pastors working in local churches find fulfillment in their current roles. A sense of pastoral fulfillment comes from their reflection on the significance of their work: a sense of God’s calling, a feeling that they are able to use their gifts and talents for furthering His cause in their current role, and their enjoyment of their ministry as a pastor, as seen in the responses to some of the items relating to pastoral fulfillment:

• 93 percent said that they feel they were in the “place that God has called me to.”
• 91 percent agreed or strongly agreed that “being a pastor seems to fit my gifts and talents.”⁶
• 90 percent agreed or strongly agreed that “I enjoy being a pastor.”
• 84 percent strongly agreed that “I know that God called me to be a pastor,” and an ad­­ditional 9 percent agreed more than disagreed.
• 79 percent felt that their “work as a church pastor helps” them fulfill their “own divine call to full-time ministry” most or nearly all the time.

For most of these questions, little difference appears in the proportion of responses provided by each of the 13 divisions of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. That was not surprising, given the very high level of “strongly agree” responses given for each question. Perhaps the greatest variation between divisions came from the question that asked pastors whether they felt that their “work as a church pastor helps” them fulfill their “own call of God to full-time ministry” most or nearly all of the time. The responses from each of the divisions appear in figure 1.⁷

A church pastor might be expected to assume a wide variety of roles in any given week: preacher, committee chair, biblical scholar, ethicist, personnel manager, grief counselor, marriage celebrant, marriage counselor, administrator of various church functions, volunteer lawnmower, and dispute resolver, just to name a few. All the tasks that fall to the minister’s lot add up to a highly challenging workload, quite apart from the urgent, critical, and unexpected nature of many of the pastor’s duties. Given this, the result reported in figure 1 could be deemed a very positive one. Amid the clutter of their complex work-life, Adventist pastors are conscious that they are fulfilling their “own call of God to full-time ministry” most or nearly all of the time.

Matters of concern

Among all the positive reports of their experience as pastors, however, several items stand out as matters of concern. For example:

• More than 15 percent of all pastors strongly agreed that “I feel run down and drained of physical or emotional energy,” and a further 29 percent agreed more than disagreed. In other words, 44 percent, or nearly 1 in 2 pastors, reported being drained of physical or emotional energy. Figure 2 reveals that while the percentages vary between divisions, in all divisions there are notable numbers of pastors reporting a sense of exhaustion.
• More than 10 percent of all pastors reported that they strongly agreed with the statement “I feel that I have no one to talk to or counsel with,” and a further 20 percent agreed more than disagreed.
• More than 10 percent of all pastors strongly agreed that “I get discouraged because nobody seems to care,” and a further 18 percent agreed more than disagreed.
• Roughly 10 percent of all respondents strongly agreed that “Sometimes I feel that I would like to leave pastoral ministry,” and an additional 18 percent agreed more than disagreed with this item. It amounts to 28 percent or slightly more than 1 in 4 pastors who have contemplated departing the ministry at one time or another.

Has the experience changed?

A previous global survey of Adventist pastors occurred in 2013. The more recent GAPS retained as many questions as possible from the earlier survey.⁸ Table 1 compares the responses in the two different surveys.

The percentages reported in table 1 show a small decline in the percentage of pastors agreeing with positive comments about their ministry and a small increase in their agreement with negative comments. The combination of the increasing complexity of the role of ministers and the growth of Adventist Church membership since 2013 without a comparable increase in the number of ministers makes the slight decline in the overall satisfaction of ministers in their roles an expected outcome.

How is the experience similar and different?

The responses to the GAPS may be compared to other nationally based surveys, such as those available for North America. It might be pointed out that while differences in working conditions do exist between the North American Division (NAD) and many of the other divisions, their responses to questions asking whether they had thought of quitting ministry and feeling drained of physical and emotional energy are consistent with how pastors in divisions elsewhere have answered the question (see figures 2 and 3).

It is also insightful to compare the results from NAD Adventist pastors with those of North American ministers from a variety of denominations.⁹ Table 2 compares the results of the GAPS with those of other research projects reported in pastoralcareinc.com.

Such findings reveal that Adventist pastors are about as likely to think of leaving pastoral ministry as are clergy of other denominations (38 percent vs. 38 percent). On the other hand, a substantially greater portion of Adventist pastors in the NAD report that they are able to pay their bills regularly (71 percent vs. 43 percent). While these results might be “better,” it is still of significant concern that so many Adventist pastors feel run down as well or are sometimes unable to pay their bills.

Insights for leaders

Much in the survey results will likely encourage church administrators. Ministerial leaders are often the people working with pastors who are finding challenges in their roles or are otherwise disaffected. The good news for ministerial leaders is that a vast majority of Adventist pastors are confident that they are working in a role to which God has called them, and they feel their current work placement enables them to exercise their call to ministry. Seen from this perspective, pastoral morale is very high.

Nonetheless, the role of local church pastors is demanding, and many pastors are feeling stressed. Especially alarming is the high percentage who feel physically drained. Given the emphasis that the Adventist Church places on a healthy lifestyle, this is especially challenging. In some parts of the world, pastors have received the opportunity to participate in regular exercise programs. Elsewhere, exercise is encouraged as part of self-leadership. But while exercise has proven helpful to many, it appears that practices tending to build up physical resilience are either absent or are not being pursued with the necessary diligence to make a difference in the lives of some pastors. If nothing else, the results from the Global Adventist Pastors’ survey highlight why efforts that the Seventh-day Adventist Church has been making to ensure that Adventist pastors are well-informed about health-related matters must continue, including mental health awareness, opportunities to participate in exercise regimes, health check-ups, and the like.

The issue of loneliness, on the other hand, can be inherent in the role of local church pastors, especially in some single-pastor settings. Again, the Adventist Church has a strong element of pastoral fellowship built into its administrative practices. Sometimes it takes place in either weekly or monthly meetings or online gatherings. Some fellowship is found in professional development programs, as well as in meetings in conjunction with yearly camp meetings or other church functions. But again, here is an area to which perhaps church leadership needs to give more thought. One may reasonably assume that the issue of low physical stamina and the issue of emotional loneliness contribute to some pastors considering whether or not to continue as ministers in their local church.

The ready availability of the GAPS on the ASTR website can enable ministerial secretaries and their associates to make plans to address issues the survey results have raised. It also facilitates administrative processes to support pastors in light of the recommendations.

Insights for pastors

The research team would like to give a huge thank you to all who participated in the survey and commend Seventh-day Adventist pastors for your overallattitude and commitment to your ministry. The survey results have been inspiring for us. We say, continue to feed yourself spiritually through prayer and by studying your Bibles regularly, just as you have reported that you do. Rejoice in the fact that you are confident of your call from God to ministry and enjoy opportunities that occur every day to fulfill it in your ministry to others.

As for matters to think about, perhaps reading that feelings of being run down, lacking energy, and loneliness are common among your fellow pastors will prompt you to reflect a little on the rhythms between your professional and personal lives, and how they intersect. We all know about the importance of regular sleep and exercise. But it can be hard to fit them in among the other demands that you have in your professional life. Most pastors could likely preach a cogent sermon on stewardship of time and talents, so you have little need for us to pursue this matter. But perhaps you will take this opportunity to rethink your priorities and allocation of your time. Understandably, it is a challenging task, but giving attention to your own spiritual and physical well-being is an important step toward the goals that most pastors have in working for the Adventist Church.

To end on one more positive note, 86 percent of pastors rated it very likely that they will be “working as a minister in the Seventh-day Adventist Church in 10 years’ time if [they] do not retire.” This is great news. The teams of Adventist pastors across the planet are highly valued because they are essential in fulfilling the Great Commission that is the mission of the church.