Episode 68 - STEP SEVEN | Letting God Heal the Pastor, Not the Performer

Today we talk about the crash that almost every pastor knows but rarely admits—the moment after the sermon when the anointing fades, the adrenaline stops, and the real battle begins. You’ve prayed. You’ve preached. God has moved.

But when the house grows quiet… the worries return.
The pain you’ve carried comes back.
The temptations you thought were gone show up again.
And the enemy whispers, “You’re failing.” But you’re not.
You’re human.

And God is inviting you into something deeper than image management—He wants to heal the pastor, not the performer. In this episode, we walk through why pastors hide, why the anointing doesn’t erase our humanity, and how God used imperfect people throughout Scripture—Elijah, Balaam, and even King Saul—while still calling them to transformation. This step is about dropping the act, letting God into the rooms we keep locked, and allowing His voice to shape us more than our platform does. Step 7: “I seek character change, not image management.”
(2 Corinthians 3:18)

If you’ve ever felt anointed one moment and broken the next… you’re not alone.
And you’re not beyond healing.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/pastors-in-recovery--6262503/support.

 Connect with Jon and find hope for your own recovery journey:

🌐 www.pastorsinrecovery.com
📧 [email protected]
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@pastorsinrecovery
🎵 Also visit Jon’s music channel, youtube.com/@CrashingLyrics, to hear more songs featured in the podcast. Just go to Playlists and look for Pastors in Recovery.

BONUS EPISODE — “Tripping Over Myself”

In this bonus episode, Jon looks at the blind spots we all have — the places where we keep tripping over our own attitudes, reactions, and old patterns. Sometimes the biggest obstacle in the hallway isn’t the enemy… it’s us.

This episode features Jon’s new original song, “Tripping Over Myself” — a throughtful track about stumbling over our own blind spots and learning to let God show us what we’ve been defending. If you’ve ever reacted too quickly, defended something that didn’t matter, or discovered your biggest struggle was actually your own stubbornness… this bonus episode will make you smile and encourage your heart. Sit back, enjoy and let God speak gently to the places you’ve been protecting.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/pastors-in-recovery--6262503/support.

 Connect with Jon and find hope for your own recovery journey:

🌐 www.pastorsinrecovery.com
📧 [email protected]
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@pastorsinrecovery
🎵 Also visit Jon’s music channel, youtube.com/@CrashingLyrics, to hear more songs featured in the podcast. Just go to Playlists and look for Pastors in Recovery.

Episode 67 - STEP SIX | Being Willing To Change + Original Song "No More Defending"

Step Six is where healing finally starts to take root. It’s the moment we stop defending our dysfunction and become willing for God to rewrite what we’ve been hiding. In this episode, Jon shares raw stories from his years of church planting—ministry burnout, pride, insecurity, financial pressure, and the addictions that surfaced when life got overwhelming. He also opens up about the deeper roots behind anger, shame, and the patterns that kept him stuck. 

Romans 12:2 calls us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds…but renewal begins with willingness. If you’ve been exhausted, overwhelmed, or defending habits you know are hurting you, this episode is for you. God isn’t asking for perfection—only willingness.

Featuring the new worship song:

🎵 “No More Defending” — a Step Six anthem about moving from hiding to healing.



Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/pastors-in-recovery--6262503/support.

 Connect with Jon and find hope for your own recovery journey:

🌐 www.pastorsinrecovery.com
📧 [email protected]
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@pastorsinrecovery
🎵 Also visit Jon’s music channel, youtube.com/@CrashingLyrics, to hear more songs featured in the podcast. Just go to Playlists and look for Pastors in Recovery.

Episode 66 – STEP FIVE | Confessing, Not Preaching + Original Song “Hats”

In this powerful episode of Pastors in Recovery, Jon unpacks Step Five: Confessing, Not Preaching — learning to tell the truth instead of performing it. He shares honest reflections from his own ministry life — the “pastor hat,” the “church-planter hat,” and the moment he realized that the only hat that truly fits is the real-self hat. Through personal stories, relatable pastor examples, and the story of King Saul, Jon reminds us that fear of people leads to performance, but confession leads to freedom. 

This episode also features Jon’s brand-new original Suno AI-assisted song, “Hats,” a nostalgic 1920s jazz-gospel piece led by clarinet that captures the journey of taking off every mask until only the real self remains.

🎵 Don’t preach your confession — live it.

📖 James 5:16 — “Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.”

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/pastors-in-recovery--6262503/support.

 Connect with Jon and find hope for your own recovery journey:

🌐 www.pastorsinrecovery.com
📧 [email protected]
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@pastorsinrecovery
🎵 Also visit Jon’s music channel, youtube.com/@CrashingLyrics, to hear more songs featured in the podcast. Just go to Playlists and look for Pastors in Recovery.

This episode includes AI-generated content.

Episode 65 — STEP FOUR | Taking Honest Inventory + Original Song “In Your Eyes"

In this episode of Pastors in Recovery, Jon Hammond walks through Step Four — Taking Honest Inventory. It’s the moment when pastors and ministry leaders stop performing and start allowing God to search beneath the surface.Through powerful stories and personal reflection, Jon shares how honesty replaces performance, how confession becomes a process, and how true freedom begins when we finally write the truth down and share it with someone we trust. 

This episode features Jon’s original Suno song, “In Your Eyes,” a tender, acoustic reflection on God’s loving presence — the One who sees us fully and still calls us His own. 

📖 Psalm 139:23–24 — “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/pastors-in-recovery--6262503/support.

 Connect with Jon and find hope for your own recovery journey:

🌐 www.pastorsinrecovery.com
📧 [email protected]
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@pastorsinrecovery
🎵 Also visit Jon’s music channel, youtube.com/@CrashingLyrics, to hear more songs featured in the podcast. Just go to Playlists and look for Pastors in Recovery.

Episode 64 — STEP THREE | Laying Down Control: Surrendering Ministry Outcomes and Personal Image + Original Song “Lay It Down Again”

In Step Three of The Twelve Steps for a Pastor in Recovery, Jon talks about one of the hardest steps in ministry — laying down control. For many pastors, surrender doesn’t mean giving up—it means giving God back what was already His. In this honest and personal episode, Jon shares real stories from his years in ministry, the struggle between vision and surrender, and the peace that came when he finally released control of outcomes, image, and expectations. You’ll also hear how even great leaders like Moses wrestled with this step, and how learning to trust God’s leadership can lift the weight we were never meant to carry. “Letting go doesn’t mean giving up — it means giving God back what was already His.” If you’ve ever felt worn out trying to hold everything together, this episode will meet you right where you are. 

🎧 Key Themes:

• The progressive nature of recovery — why you can’t skip steps
• The illusion of control in ministry leadership
• How to trust God with your image, plans, and outcomes
• A practical tool for surrender: The Surrender List

📖 Scripture References:
Proverbs 3:5–6 · Isaiah 6:8 · Psalm 37:5 · Jeremiah 10:23 · Matthew 11:28–30 🎵 Original Song: “Lay It Down Again” — a soulful, country-inspired anthem about surrendering ministry control and finding peace in God’s leadership.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/pastors-in-recovery--6262503/support.

 Connect with Jon and find hope for your own recovery journey:

🌐 www.pastorsinrecovery.com
📧 [email protected]
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@pastorsinrecovery
🎵 Also visit Jon’s music channel, youtube.com/@CrashingLyrics, to hear more songs featured in the podcast. Just go to Playlists and look for Pastors in Recovery.

Bonus: Praise That Changes Us | When Worship Opens Our Eyes

In this short devotional, Jon Hammond reflects on the power of praise—not as something God needs, but as something that transforms us.

When we praise, our eyes open to see God more clearly. Doubt shrinks. Faith rises.
And we discover that inviting His presence isn’t about summoning Him—it’s about awakening our own hearts to the reality that He’s already here.

Reflection Questions:

• What does it mean to invite God’s presence?
• Does He really need an invitation?
• Isn’t He already welcome?
• Can’t He do whatever He wants to do?
• What happens to us when He takes us up on that invitation?
• What happens to God relationally in that moment?

💬 Closing thought:

“Praise doesn’t make God bigger—it makes our hearts more aware of how big He’s always been.”

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/pastors-in-recovery--6262503/support.

 Connect with Jon and find hope for your own recovery journey:

🌐 www.pastorsinrecovery.com
📧 [email protected]
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@pastorsinrecovery
🎵 Also visit Jon’s music channel, youtube.com/@CrashingLyrics, to hear more songs featured in the podcast. Just go to Playlists and look for Pastors in Recovery.

Episode 63 — Letting God Be God Again (featuring “I Can’t Fix It, But He Can”

In Step Two, Jon opens his heart and shares the real struggle of trying to fix what only God can heal. Through honest stories—from ministry comparison to personal recovery, and even a life-and-death moment with his wife—this episode reminds us that surrender isn’t weakness; it’s worship.

Jon also debuts his new folk-rock revival song, “I Can’t Fix It, But He Can,” a heartfelt anthem about letting go and letting God be God again. 🎵

🙏 Step 2: We came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/pastors-in-recovery--6262503/support.

 Connect with Jon and find hope for your own recovery journey:

🌐 www.pastorsinrecovery.com
📧 [email protected]
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@pastorsinrecovery
🎵 Also visit Jon’s music channel, youtube.com/@CrashingLyrics, to hear more songs featured in the podcast. Just go to Playlists and look for Pastors in Recovery.

Episode 62 - STEP ONE | Facing the Mirror

In this first episode of our 12-Step Series for Pastors in Recovery, we begin with Step One: Facing the Mirror. Jon Hammond opens up about what it means to be honest before God — to stop pretending, stop performing, and start admitting what’s really going on inside.

As pastors and leaders, our closeness with God often mirrors the closeness of our relationships with those we love most. When that connection weakens, everything else follows. Jon shares a personal story about a barista who reminded him what genuine love in Christ looks like — the kind of love we can’t manufacture on our own. Through this story, we’re reminded that God sometimes uses unexpected people and moments to wake us up and draw us back to Himself.

This episode challenges us to stop running from the truth, face our pain, and invite Jesus back to the center of our ministry and marriage. Because without Him, it’s all performance — but through Him, it becomes transformation.

📖 Key Scripture: “We all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” — 2 Corinthians 3:18

🎵 Song Featured:
"Face the Mirror (See Jesus in Me)" 

🧭 Series Roadmap:
Episode 62 begins our 12-Step Series for Pastors in Recovery:

1. Facing the Mirror
2. Letting God Be God Again
3. Laying Down Control
4. Taking Honest Inventory
5. Confessing, Not Preaching
6. Being Willing to Change
7. Heal the Pastor, Not the Performer
8. Owning the Fallout
9. Making It Right
10. Honest Awareness
11. Staying Close to the Source
12. Leading from the Overflow

🎙️ Next Week:
Episode 63 – Letting God Be God Again
We’ll talk about what it really means to trust Him to restore what’s broken — in our hearts, our marriages, and our ministries.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/pastors-in-recovery--6262503/support.

 Connect with Jon and find hope for your own recovery journey:

🌐 www.pastorsinrecovery.com
📧 [email protected]
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@pastorsinrecovery
🎵 Also visit Jon’s music channel, youtube.com/@CrashingLyrics, to hear more songs featured in the podcast. Just go to Playlists and look for Pastors in Recovery.

Episode 61 — The Twelve Steps for a Pastor in Recovery (Overview) + Original Song “No More Fakin’ It”

Pastor, when did ministry become the place you hide your pain?

In this special kickoff episode, Jon introduces The Twelve Steps for a Pastor in Recovery — a simple, honest path from pretending to freedom.

You’ll hear how these twelve steps bring healing to those who lead others but struggle in silence.
This week’s bonus track, “No More Fakin’ It,” delivers a hopeful, early-2000s-style hip-hop rhythm that reminds every pastor: it’s time to stop pretending and start healing.

Join Jon as he shares stories, Scripture, and encouragement for pastors ready to face the truth and walk in grace — one step at a time.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/pastors-in-recovery--6262503/support.

 Connect with Jon and find hope for your own recovery journey:

🌐 www.pastorsinrecovery.com
📧 [email protected]
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@pastorsinrecovery
🎵 Also visit Jon’s music channel, youtube.com/@CrashingLyrics, to hear more songs featured in the podcast. Just go to Playlists and look for Pastors in Recovery.