Finding Tears of Joy for Wounded Pastors
When Shepherds Weep: Finding Tears of Joy for Wounded Pastors by Glenn C. Daman is essentially a pastoral care book for pastors. Its central argument is that suffering in ministry is not unusual, pointless, or proof of failure. Instead, Daman presents it as something God can use to shape a pastor’s heart, deepen dependence on Christ, and mature both the shepherd and the church.
Daman writes to pastors who are discouraged, wounded, lonely, criticized, exhausted, or disillusioned. The book aims to help them reinterpret ministry pain through a biblical lens. Rather than offering a “10 hacks to stop church pain by Tuesday” approach, it seems to walk pastors through the emotional and spiritual realities of ministry and point them back to faithfulness, endurance, and hope in God.
This book is about how pastors can survive ministry heartbreak without becoming bitter, numb, or spiritually hollow.
That’s really its lane.
Who it would be helpful for
It would likely be especially meaningful for:
- Pastors in small or rural churches.
- Ministry couples walking through discouragement.
- Church leaders who feel unseen or worn down.
- Anyone trying to understand the emotional cost of shepherding others.
Given Daman’s broader work, he writes with a lot of concern for small-church and rural ministry contexts, so the book may resonate especially well there.
