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Fail: Finding Hope and Grace in the Midst of Ministry Failure
Best Books About the Church from Byron Borger, Hearts and Minds Bookstore "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 disillusionment, inadequacy, declining budgets, poor decisions, opposition, depression, burnout. Many pastors 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.
208 pages, Paperback
First published May 21, 2014
15 people are currently reading
218 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
November 4, 2015
Yeah, so wish I didn't need to read this book. But coming out the other side of a pastoral flop, it is good to know that there are others who have been there, have survived and were used by God in ministry again. Some helpful and practical insight on naming failure, overcoming shame and loneliness, properly grieving a failure and suggestions for life giving practices to sustain me. I am bummed to have to read it, but I'm glad I did.
April 7, 2025
“If there is one piece of counsel for pastors that towers over all else in this book it is this: Failure is not the last word in a pastor’s life.” - page 9
I wish this book had been available thirty-one years ago. Thirty-one years ago today was an Easter Sunday. It was also the first Sunday I was out of the pulpit after resigning from a difficult ministry in a small church. Easter Sunday, with no place to proclaim Christ risen, felt like failure. Thirty-one years later, wounds have become scars. I’ve healed, but there are lasting marks I continue to carry and feel.
But J.R. Briggs’ book “Fail: Finding Hope and Grace in the Midst of Ministry Failure” has connected with me in ways beyond my own experience. Many of the stories he writes sound familiar, like I’ve heard them over cups of coffee and in prayers with hurting pastors. Over the decades, I’ve learned that my experience was far from unique. I’ve also seen, over and over again, great healing and fruitful ministry is still possible on the other side of failure.
“I realized that I had to learn my identity was not tied to my failure—and, conversely, my failure was not tied to my identity. If I did not grasp this truth, I sensed I would remain enslaved.” - page 36
Briggs encourages the wounded servants here, and I’ve found a lot of conviction as well. This book doesn’t give much time for wallowing in our hurts but provides a path of healing that begins as quickly as the next conversation with a trusted friend.
Chapters 8 and 9 were exceptionally encouraging and healing (but don’t skip directly to them). These chapters were written with Stephen Burrell, who wrote his DMin dissertation on “amoral ministry failure.” Chapter 8 lays out Stephen’s experience and research. Chapter 9 brings healing and reentry into ministry. Pastors, read these chapters carefully and don’t read them just for yourself. Read them for the next hurting pastor you encounter.
I’ve also bought two physical copies of “Fail” (because I’m not loaning out my Kindle). I intend to share them with dear friends who need encouragement as they work through their wounds.
If you need a copy, please let me know.
“The advice from wounded pastors to other wounded pastors is this: Learn from your experience—not the easy lessons of second-guessing or failure avoidance, but the deep lessons of the value of brokenness.” - page 140
I wish this book had been available thirty-one years ago. Thirty-one years ago today was an Easter Sunday. It was also the first Sunday I was out of the pulpit after resigning from a difficult ministry in a small church. Easter Sunday, with no place to proclaim Christ risen, felt like failure. Thirty-one years later, wounds have become scars. I’ve healed, but there are lasting marks I continue to carry and feel.
But J.R. Briggs’ book “Fail: Finding Hope and Grace in the Midst of Ministry Failure” has connected with me in ways beyond my own experience. Many of the stories he writes sound familiar, like I’ve heard them over cups of coffee and in prayers with hurting pastors. Over the decades, I’ve learned that my experience was far from unique. I’ve also seen, over and over again, great healing and fruitful ministry is still possible on the other side of failure.
“I realized that I had to learn my identity was not tied to my failure—and, conversely, my failure was not tied to my identity. If I did not grasp this truth, I sensed I would remain enslaved.” - page 36
Briggs encourages the wounded servants here, and I’ve found a lot of conviction as well. This book doesn’t give much time for wallowing in our hurts but provides a path of healing that begins as quickly as the next conversation with a trusted friend.
Chapters 8 and 9 were exceptionally encouraging and healing (but don’t skip directly to them). These chapters were written with Stephen Burrell, who wrote his DMin dissertation on “amoral ministry failure.” Chapter 8 lays out Stephen’s experience and research. Chapter 9 brings healing and reentry into ministry. Pastors, read these chapters carefully and don’t read them just for yourself. Read them for the next hurting pastor you encounter.
I’ve also bought two physical copies of “Fail” (because I’m not loaning out my Kindle). I intend to share them with dear friends who need encouragement as they work through their wounds.
If you need a copy, please let me know.
“The advice from wounded pastors to other wounded pastors is this: Learn from your experience—not the easy lessons of second-guessing or failure avoidance, but the deep lessons of the value of brokenness.” - page 140
July 17, 2025
I think this book could be great for two kinds of people:
1) Young ministers and those early in their training to help them prepare for the challenges of ministry and begin cultivating a framework for what genuine faithfulness in ministry looks like. What do they count as success or failure?
2) Those processing through the heartbreak of ministry disappointment and something that did not succeed like they had wanted. I think Briggs’ writing offers a kind of catharsis and reminder to ministers that they’re not alone.
As someone not in either of these positions, I was not as moved or inspired by this book. I didn’t come across anything particularly poignant or new, but I did appreciate Briggs’ vulnerability. It’s not a book that lingers much with me, but I could see myself recommending it to those I encounter in the future who may find themselves in either of the camps listed above.
1) Young ministers and those early in their training to help them prepare for the challenges of ministry and begin cultivating a framework for what genuine faithfulness in ministry looks like. What do they count as success or failure?
2) Those processing through the heartbreak of ministry disappointment and something that did not succeed like they had wanted. I think Briggs’ writing offers a kind of catharsis and reminder to ministers that they’re not alone.
As someone not in either of these positions, I was not as moved or inspired by this book. I didn’t come across anything particularly poignant or new, but I did appreciate Briggs’ vulnerability. It’s not a book that lingers much with me, but I could see myself recommending it to those I encounter in the future who may find themselves in either of the camps listed above.
May 7, 2025
This is an incredible book. I think everyone connected to a church has experienced some form of ministry failure as Briggs describes in the book. Briggs does an excellent job walking the reader through the necessary mental shifts we need to make about what a “successful” ministry looks like, and then provides several practical ways to begin moving forward faithfully. I will definitely be coming back to this book.
October 21, 2017
Great read
Fail, spoke healing to my failures and was a bandage to my wounds. Thanks JR for sharing your story, it blessed me. This book resonates and restores the failed pastor and gives hope to those of us who are still licking our bruises from ministry hurts and failure. Great read!
Fail, spoke healing to my failures and was a bandage to my wounds. Thanks JR for sharing your story, it blessed me. This book resonates and restores the failed pastor and gives hope to those of us who are still licking our bruises from ministry hurts and failure. Great read!
September 13, 2022
This book was enlightening and encouraging for anyone who has ever felt alone in the struggles they face in ministry. There was a great balance of statistics, information, and personal narratives.
It's important to note that this book is about amoral failure, so if you're looking for help regarding moral failure in ministry, search elsewhere.
It's important to note that this book is about amoral failure, so if you're looking for help regarding moral failure in ministry, search elsewhere.
October 14, 2018
A holy kiss for a bruised soul
If you ever need to know that you are not alone, if you wonder if there is a shred of hope out there, read this book.
If you ever need to know that you are not alone, if you wonder if there is a shred of hope out there, read this book.
March 8, 2019
The book I didn't want to read, but deeply needed to read.
January 10, 2022
Timely and frank, this book offers hope and help for those of us walking through the valley. It’s one of the most honest books on ministry I’ve read.
December 1, 2025
Wow. What a hard book to read. Yet, what a beautiful book to read!
July 3, 2014
Do you have any idea how to handle failure in the ministry? Do you have a “theology of failure”? Or a real biblical approach to combat feelings of failure? Are you aware that most every one in ministry struggles with feelings of failure? The air needs cleared, so enter this fine volume by Mr. Briggs and published by IVP.
In light of the mass discouragement of pastors in the wreckage of success-driven ministry, he asks, “Is this what Jesus had in mind for pastors–a life absent of joy and peace, and with omnipresent stress and emotional hardship?”
In some cases we are set up to fail and travail over it. Conferences often parade “successful” pastors before us that serve to show how we haven’t arrived rather than offering real encouragement. We are always looking for the next great program as the messiah for our ministries.
Mr. Briggs wrote from brokenness. On the track to success, it all blew up in his face. In his own painful, ugly journey he finally reached the place where he wanted to help us in ours. He began the improbable Epic Fail Pastors Conference, and strangely enough, it was wildly successful. From those gatherings of many other broken pastors, he learned even more and shares it with us. We must learn, he says, to preach the same grace to ourselves that we preach to others.
We pastors live with a nagging fear of failure. Though it is often a cultural deviation, we all know it is true. Sometimes this fuels a desire for a larger ministry that only stunts our current one. He quotes another and reminds us that “true freedom in Christ is when we have nothing to hide, nothing to lose, and nothing to prove.” Wow!
There are many other wonderful parts of this book. Tracing the grieving process through pastoral failure was greatly enlightening. Explaining how ministry is a process and not a product was spot on. His solutions for going past failure end the book on a hopeful note.
There were times I rolled my eyes on what he said, allowed, or did, but overall this is a keeper. Every pastor should make it a must-have in his library.
I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
In light of the mass discouragement of pastors in the wreckage of success-driven ministry, he asks, “Is this what Jesus had in mind for pastors–a life absent of joy and peace, and with omnipresent stress and emotional hardship?”
In some cases we are set up to fail and travail over it. Conferences often parade “successful” pastors before us that serve to show how we haven’t arrived rather than offering real encouragement. We are always looking for the next great program as the messiah for our ministries.
Mr. Briggs wrote from brokenness. On the track to success, it all blew up in his face. In his own painful, ugly journey he finally reached the place where he wanted to help us in ours. He began the improbable Epic Fail Pastors Conference, and strangely enough, it was wildly successful. From those gatherings of many other broken pastors, he learned even more and shares it with us. We must learn, he says, to preach the same grace to ourselves that we preach to others.
We pastors live with a nagging fear of failure. Though it is often a cultural deviation, we all know it is true. Sometimes this fuels a desire for a larger ministry that only stunts our current one. He quotes another and reminds us that “true freedom in Christ is when we have nothing to hide, nothing to lose, and nothing to prove.” Wow!
There are many other wonderful parts of this book. Tracing the grieving process through pastoral failure was greatly enlightening. Explaining how ministry is a process and not a product was spot on. His solutions for going past failure end the book on a hopeful note.
There were times I rolled my eyes on what he said, allowed, or did, but overall this is a keeper. Every pastor should make it a must-have in his library.
I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
December 16, 2015
There are different kinds of books that I read that I find useful. Some books have one key thought or idea that sticks with me forever. Others have one chapter or character or theme which really stick out. Obviously there are books that I read for pleasure and don't stick with me except for the pleasant memories I associate with them. It is a rare book that is so absurdly useful on nearly every page as "Fail."
The assumed audience for the book is people who have failed in their Christian experience, and especially in their experience as leaders or pastors in Christian churches. The book takes an honest and grace-filled approach to questioning the most prevalent assumptions about ministry failure, ultimately concluding that what our culture calls failure, our Savior does not. Having said that, anyone who has spent time in ministry knows that catastrophic and visible ministry failure is not the only kind, and as someone who has dealt only with the "garden variety" disappointments of ministry failure which are less publicly visible but can be nearly as traumatizing, I found comfort and hope in the pages of this book. In particular, the last chapter, which gives permission to process failure in a variety of ways, was particularly helpful.
In general, I would recommend this book to any ministry leader, and to any believer who has spent long in the church and has to deal with their failures or the failure of others. Hope is found within.
The assumed audience for the book is people who have failed in their Christian experience, and especially in their experience as leaders or pastors in Christian churches. The book takes an honest and grace-filled approach to questioning the most prevalent assumptions about ministry failure, ultimately concluding that what our culture calls failure, our Savior does not. Having said that, anyone who has spent time in ministry knows that catastrophic and visible ministry failure is not the only kind, and as someone who has dealt only with the "garden variety" disappointments of ministry failure which are less publicly visible but can be nearly as traumatizing, I found comfort and hope in the pages of this book. In particular, the last chapter, which gives permission to process failure in a variety of ways, was particularly helpful.
In general, I would recommend this book to any ministry leader, and to any believer who has spent long in the church and has to deal with their failures or the failure of others. Hope is found within.
February 26, 2015
This is a great book for anyone who's been in ministry for more than a day. Though he doesn't come out and say as much, what Briggs is really doing is giving us a theology of failure. He's also giving us a theology of imperfection. Some might prefer "spirituality of imperfection" but Briggs is decidedly Christian and approaches the subject from a Christian theological perspective. His lists of burned out and burned up pastor statistics might make you think there is no hope for pastoral ministry today. But, throughout, there is a hopeful message that pastors can indeed be themselves (warts and all) and still be effective and beloved ministers of the gospel. In fact, Briggs would say that you are not even qualified to become a minister unless you have delved the depths from which you've come. Failure is a part of life as a human just like "errors" are part of the game of baseball. Learning to live with our own imperfections, failures and emotionality will be key to living out the gospel of Jesus Christ and showing others how to do the same.
January 16, 2017
A few books have touched my heart. Not many books gives this heaviness in my heart. This one did. This is because this topic is so central to my heart and conviction. This book is about (as the subtitle says) finding hope and grace in the midst of ministry failure.
Briggs addresses the culture of success that plagues western churches today. He calls it the golden calf of the American Church - and rightly so. In this book, Briggs tells his story of failure in ministry and how the current definitin of ministry success is not necessarily true.
With many pastors experiencing pressure of "success", this is a timely book! This book is so counter-intuitive that it makes sense! Man, I love how Briggs speaks this directly to my ego!
This is a highly recommended book for pastors and ministers everywhere. I don't care on which stage you are in in your pastoral/leadership, this book will change your perspective, your ministry, and maybe even your life.
5 out of 5
Briggs addresses the culture of success that plagues western churches today. He calls it the golden calf of the American Church - and rightly so. In this book, Briggs tells his story of failure in ministry and how the current definitin of ministry success is not necessarily true.
With many pastors experiencing pressure of "success", this is a timely book! This book is so counter-intuitive that it makes sense! Man, I love how Briggs speaks this directly to my ego!
This is a highly recommended book for pastors and ministers everywhere. I don't care on which stage you are in in your pastoral/leadership, this book will change your perspective, your ministry, and maybe even your life.
5 out of 5
July 23, 2014
I've heard (and experienced) many of the statistics in this book before. But the gathering of so many together is startling.
For example, 1500 pastors leave the ministry for good each month due to burnout or contention in their churches;
80 percent of pastors (and 84 percent of their spouses) are discouraged in their role as pastors;
50 percent of pastors say they are unable to meet the demands of their job and are so discouraged that they would
leave the ministry if they could, but have no other way of making a living etc.
But the one that most struck me: For every 20 pastors who go into ministry only one retires from the ministry.
The author, a former Pastor of a megachurch, does a good job of both tracing the grief and recovery process
for those who have had an amoral loss of their ministry. He also says some very good things for everyone
about the Christian life.
For example, 1500 pastors leave the ministry for good each month due to burnout or contention in their churches;
80 percent of pastors (and 84 percent of their spouses) are discouraged in their role as pastors;
50 percent of pastors say they are unable to meet the demands of their job and are so discouraged that they would
leave the ministry if they could, but have no other way of making a living etc.
But the one that most struck me: For every 20 pastors who go into ministry only one retires from the ministry.
The author, a former Pastor of a megachurch, does a good job of both tracing the grief and recovery process
for those who have had an amoral loss of their ministry. He also says some very good things for everyone
about the Christian life.
June 10, 2015
Here are some of the more shocking statistics I found in this book:
"Pastors who work fewer than 50 hours a week are 35 percent more likely to be terminated."
"For ever 20 pastors who go into ministry only one retires from the ministry."
"70 percent of pastors say they do not have a single close friend."
"62 percent of pastors reported having little spiritual life."
Ministry is exhausting, isolating, and often discouraging; these are troubling realizations...or for many of us, these are personal experiences. But thankfully this book reminds us that God has a different metric for success than our parishioners and God is in the business of giving new life to what the world may consider failure. Pastors need a theology of failure and this book delivers. "Can someone tell me the gospel again?....Thanks. I needed that."
"Pastors who work fewer than 50 hours a week are 35 percent more likely to be terminated."
"For ever 20 pastors who go into ministry only one retires from the ministry."
"70 percent of pastors say they do not have a single close friend."
"62 percent of pastors reported having little spiritual life."
Ministry is exhausting, isolating, and often discouraging; these are troubling realizations...or for many of us, these are personal experiences. But thankfully this book reminds us that God has a different metric for success than our parishioners and God is in the business of giving new life to what the world may consider failure. Pastors need a theology of failure and this book delivers. "Can someone tell me the gospel again?....Thanks. I needed that."
February 22, 2015
As a pastor of twenty years, I've had plenty of failures. I've also learned that churches aren't easy places to fail. They are just as susceptible to success-obsession as any other organization in our culture. That is tragic. Our Lord began his ministry promising that he had good news for the poor, signaling that he cares for all people, while too often churches only have an interest in those who can improve their fortunes. JR Briggs writes to pastors and other Christian leaders to encourage them to respond to failure by returning to our forgiving Lord rather than allowing failures to crush them. This is a book that leads us back to the heart of the gospel as our foundation for ministry and life.
December 7, 2015
As one reviewer put it, "This is a great book for anyone that's been in ministry for more than a day." Christian ministry in the context of American culture is something like an accident waiting to happen. And it happens, over and over again. Expectations placed on pastors and other leaders are unrealistic. The expectations that leaders place on themselves and their own deeply dysfunctional goals or measures of success become the ready occasions for those accidents. In this book the author delves into the how and why of hope and grace that are to be found in the scattered pieces of ministry failure. This is a book that offers wisdom both prospectively and retrospectively to those in ministry leadership
April 5, 2016
This book was so timely for me. My husband and I were part of a few church relationships that ended badly. The essence of perceived spiritual failure articulated the anchor I was carrying around in my soul. On page 36 of the book he wrote, "People's perceptions of my ministry failures had created a virtual prison that left me living in a terribly small cell. My soul was suffering from spiritual claustrophobia." When I read this, I cried. I've reread the book twice and have recommended to others that have struggled to reconcile and move past the devastating effects of ministry failure, perceived or otherwise.
August 11, 2014
A thoughtful book, and certainly offers a different perspective to "everything will be all right as long as you have these tops three work habits," which is helpful for some.
Briggs approach is insightful, carrying the tragedy of American pastors (and one Australian pastor) who bear the scars of failure, and the impact such failure has upon the church, family, friends and community.
I will read through this again, and certainly engage in conversations with trusted colleagues, to make the slow trek of exploring and living in fidelity to God.
Briggs approach is insightful, carrying the tragedy of American pastors (and one Australian pastor) who bear the scars of failure, and the impact such failure has upon the church, family, friends and community.
I will read through this again, and certainly engage in conversations with trusted colleagues, to make the slow trek of exploring and living in fidelity to God.
October 30, 2015
Great book - highly recommended for anyone in the ministry or anyone serving in leadership - great insights into what really matters and how to deal with failure.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews