Having read an article on the many vicars, pastors and ministers taking their own lives as depression finally leads them to doubt their effectiveness, perhaps we need to look at the reason why this is happening to our Shepherds.
Perhaps as Christians we think we can help, solve and make better other people's lives. Perhaps we do in big and little ways. Unfortunately this is a deep hole and you can get sucked into it if you have a Saviour mentality.
For whatever reason someone has been called to the Service of others, being a Saviour is not a good idea. It takes a Divine Person to be a Saviour. Man is not a Saviour, his or her shoulders are not big enough to handle the vastness of this vocation. There are wonderful leaders in our churches, house groups, prayer groups to name a few, but these Godly men and woman in order to survive the onslaught of neediness, need to be realists. They can not do the Saviours job. Their door if always open will end up permanently closed due to the stress piled on by the never ending needs of others.
There is so much we can endure, until our body says stop. It is such a shame that the stop often comes from a medical condition. Then people are forced to take time out. Is that what God wants? Does He require us to keep going until we fall foul of illness related to exhaustion and stress. If people don't know when to stop, their engine will eventually stall, and they will become useless in their ministries, and may become a burden to others who have to care for them. For those who have no one to care for them, taking their own life might feel like the only way out.
The burden of the sheepfold is God's responsibility. The Shepherds are there to facilitate God's plan, not to burn out. If people are not realistic as to what they can do and can not do and do not put limits on their time and efforts by delegating to others to protect their needs then they will need saving.
Pride can also be a downfall. Belief that only you can do the job and others wont do as good a job as you, is sometimes true, but if you look at whom God chose to be his Shepherds, perhaps we need to be a little humble in this area. God's world wont be taken over by the devil if you need time off, because God already has the Victory. This is true from the church cleaner to the finance manager.
There will always be a needy world, all the time you have those with and those without. It is a never ending circle, ministers, be gentle on yourself, look after yourself and above all note that there is only one Saviour and His name is Jesus Christ.
God bless