Discussion question your group will work through:
1.Cordeiro opens the book with a striking admission of his own collapse — a moment when he realized he had nothing left to give. Had you ever heard a pastor or ministry leader speak that openly about personal breakdown before reading this book? What was your initial reaction to his vulnerability?
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About This Study Guide
Leading on Empty by Wayne Cordeiro is a courageous and searingly honest book written by one of America's most effective church-planting pastors — a man who ran himself into the ground and nearly lost everything in the process. Cordeiro describes his descent into burnout and clinical depression, and then, drawing on Scripture, the wisdom of counselors and doctors, and hard-won personal experience, he maps a way back to sustainable ministry and life. The book's central thesis is both simple and countercultural: the tank you lead from must be regularly refilled, or you will one day find yourself leading on empty — and the consequences reach far beyond yourself to your family, your church, and your calling. Cordeiro does not treat burnout as a character flaw or a faith failure; he treats it as a physiological, emotional, and spiritual reality that demands honest diagnosis and intentional renewal.</p><p>This study guide is designed to be used week by week, one chapter at a time. Before each group meeting (or your own personal study session), read the assigned chapter slowly — perhaps with a journal open beside you. Let the questions marinate for a day or two before you discuss or write your answers. Some questions ask you to recall what Cordeiro said; others ask you to examine your own patterns honestly; still others invite you to think theologically about what the chapter implies for your understanding of God, the gospel, and the nature of ministry. Together they form a full-orbed engagement with the text. If you are using this guide in a small group, covenant with one another at the outset to be honest — burnout and depression thrive in silence, and this book is an invitation out of silence.</p><p>By the end of this guide you should have done more than finish a book. You should have a clearer picture of your own energy reserves and what depletes or replenishes them, a realistic plan for sustainable rhythms of rest and renewal, and a deeper theological conviction that God is not honored by your exhaustion. Whether you are a pastor, a ministry leader, a volunteer, or someone who simply gives more than they receive, Leading on Empty offers you both a diagnosis and a remedy — and this guide is designed to help you receive both as personally and as practically as possible.
11-Week Schedule
- Week 1Introduction — Recognizing the Warning Signs7 questions
- Week 2Chapter 2 — The Anatomy of Burnout7 questions
- Week 3Chapter 3 — A Personal Inventory7 questions
- Week 4Chapter 4 — Refilling the Reservoir7 questions
- Week 5Chapter 5 — Soul Care and the Inner Life7 questions
- Week 6Chapter 6 — Redefining Success7 questions
- Week 7Chapter 7 — The Sabbath Principle7 questions
- Week 8Chapter 8 — Restoring Relationships7 questions
- Week 9Chapter 9 — Navigating the Long Road Back7 questions
- Week 10Chapter 10 — Building a Sustainable Life7 questions
- Week 11Review & Reflection — Looking Back, Moving Forward8 questions
Week 1: Introduction — Recognizing the Warning Signs
Free sampleRead the Introduction and Chapter 1 of Leading on Empty. Key Scripture: Psalm 23; 1 Kings 19:1-18 (Elijah under the juniper tree).
1.Cordeiro opens the book with a striking admission of his own collapse — a moment when he realized he had nothing left to give. Had you ever heard a pastor or ministry leader speak that openly about personal breakdown before reading this book? What was your initial reaction to his vulnerability?
2.Cordeiro describes burnout not as a sudden explosion but as a slow leak — a gradual draining of reserves over time. Looking back over the last few years of your own life, can you identify moments when the tank was clearly getting lower? What were the signs you may have ignored or explained away?
3.The author draws a distinction between being tired and being depleted. In your own words, what is the difference? Why does that distinction matter for how we respond?
4.Cordeiro references the story of Elijah in 1 Kings 19 — a mighty prophet who, after a great victory, collapses under a broom tree and asks God to take his life. What does God's response to Elijah (food, sleep, water — before any conversation or correction) suggest about how God views our exhaustion?
a.What does it tell you that God did not rebuke Elijah or demand he get back to work?
b.How might this shape the way you respond to your own depletion — or to a colleague's?
5.The book is addressed primarily to pastors and ministry leaders, but burnout is not unique to clergy. If you are not in vocational ministry, what aspects of Cordeiro's description still ring true for your life and role?
6.Cordeiro suggests that the culture of ministry often rewards overwork and treats rest as laziness or lack of faith. Have you experienced or perpetuated that culture? Be specific.
7.What do you hope to gain — personally, not just intellectually — from working through this book? Take a moment to write a one-sentence intention for this study before you begin.
Week 2: Chapter 2 — The Anatomy of Burnout
Read Chapter 2 of Leading on Empty. Key Scripture: Matthew 11:28-30; Galatians 6:9.
1.Cordeiro breaks burnout down into emotional, physical, and spiritual dimensions. Which of those three dimensions resonated most with your own experience or observation? Why?
Week 3: Chapter 3 — A Personal Inventory
Read Chapter 3 of Leading on Empty. Key Scripture: Lamentations 3:19-26; Psalm 139:23-24.
1.Cordeiro walks readers through a personal inventory of their emotional reserves. Were there any areas of the inventory where you were surprised by your own answers? What did that surprise reveal?
Week 4: Chapter 4 — Refilling the Reservoir
Read Chapter 4 of Leading on Empty. Key Scripture: Isaiah 40:28-31; Mark 1:35.
1.Cordeiro makes the case that refilling is not selfish — it is what allows us to keep giving. Did that argument land for you, or does part of you still resist the idea that investing in your own renewal is legitimate? Where does that resistance come from?
Week 5: Chapter 5 — Soul Care and the Inner Life
Read Chapter 5 of Leading on Empty. Key Scripture: Psalm 46:10; John 15:1-5.
1.Cordeiro argues that many leaders are so focused on the outer work of ministry that the inner life — prayer, Scripture, silence, solitude — is starved. How would you honestly describe the current condition of your inner life? Is it a source of strength or a source of anxiety?
Week 6: Chapter 6 — Redefining Success
Read Chapter 6 of Leading on Empty. Key Scripture: 1 Corinthians 4:1-5; Matthew 25:14-23.
1.Cordeiro argues that ministry leaders often unconsciously adopt the world's metrics for success — attendance, budget, influence, growth — and that these metrics can become idols that drive us into the ground. Which of these metrics (or others) has had the strongest grip on you? Be honest.
Week 7: Chapter 7 — The Sabbath Principle
Read Chapter 7 of Leading on Empty. Key Scripture: Genesis 2:1-3; Exodus 20:8-11; Mark 2:27.
1.Cordeiro argues that Sabbath is not optional for the sustainable leader — it is architectural, woven into creation itself by God's own example. Before reading this chapter, how did you think about Sabbath? Has this chapter shifted your view?
Week 8: Chapter 8 — Restoring Relationships
Read Chapter 8 of Leading on Empty. Key Scripture: Ecclesiastes 4:9-12; Hebrews 10:24-25.
1.Cordeiro describes how burnout tends to push leaders into isolation — they withdraw from honest friendship precisely when they need it most. Have you experienced that pattern? What drove the withdrawal?
Week 9: Chapter 9 — Navigating the Long Road Back
Read Chapter 9 of Leading on Empty. Key Scripture: Psalm 30; Isaiah 43:18-19.
1.Cordeiro is honest that recovery from burnout — especially when it has reached the point of clinical depression — takes much longer than most people expect. Were you surprised by the timeline he described? How does our culture's demand for quick fixes work against genuine recovery?
Week 10: Chapter 10 — Building a Sustainable Life
Read Chapter 10 of Leading on Empty. Key Scripture: Proverbs 4:23; Luke 14:28-30.
1.Cordeiro describes the difference between a reactive life — always responding to the urgent — and a proactive life that is built on intentional rhythms. Honestly, which word better describes your current life? What would it take to move toward the latter?
Week 11: Review & Reflection — Looking Back, Moving Forward
Review your notes, journal entries, and underlined passages from all chapters of Leading on Empty.
1.Which single chapter or concept from *Leading on Empty* was most personally impactful for you, and why? Was it what you expected when you began the book?
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