Q: How do I learn to prevent burnout when I become a missionary?

One way to prevent burnout is to schedule ’off’ time into your calendar, as you do any other event. Then stick to it! Secondly, have an accountability team to hold you to a number of hours that is reasonable.

A great resource for learning how to handle stress and build margin into your life as a missionary is the Sharpening Your Interpersonal Skills course, by ITPartners.org. It’s a hugely worthwhile investment into your life.

For you to ask such a question, you have probably already experienced burn-out personally or watched another go through the painful process. The best solution to the problem is the prevention of it. In Acts 4, 3,000 people from 16-plus nations trusted in Christ as Savior. As they went back to their home countries, their solutions to maintaining a strong Christian witness is the solution to prevent missionary burn-out: They remained steadfast in the Apostles Doctrine (Dig deep into the Word daily!), in fellowship (be a vulnerable part of a team), in breaking of bread (practicing the sacraments), and in prayers (an open communication with God, our Father, through the many types of prayer).

You can prevent burnout by learning to relax and to cast all your cares upon the Lord. After all, you are only a vessel and called to be a witness of the great things the Lord has done and will do for those who put their trust in Him. Many get burned out especially pastors because they take the burden of the people upon themselves instead of casting them on the Lord. We can and must have a compassionate heart but we cannot carry their burdens. Only the Lord can. A good idea is to have some distraction or hobby even in the mission field as this would relax one.