July 31, 2019
Leadership Notes
Thom Rainer is at it again. His weekend post was on "How to Disagree with Your Pastor." It's probably a bit self-serving for me to share it, but not only are these good principles for maintaining a healthy church culture, but they are also good for where you live, work, and play. It's always a good thing to practice healthy relationship principles.
I will leave out the obvious ones {pray first and pray last}. Here are the principles, in no particular order:
· Understand the frequency of the criticism issue. Think of that in terms of your own life…your own family…where you work…how you relate to friends.
· Understand the negative magnification issue. If you get five compliments and one barbed criticism, it's human nature to focus on the one negative.
· Make sure it is absolutely necessary. If it's an issue of preference or not getting something your way, drop it. Unless it's illegal, immoral, or unbiblical, let it go.
· Don't use the old, "People are saying…" ruse. This is the strategy of a coward. You can only speak for yourself. One pastor tells something a retired Army General in his church did. At a meeting, someone said, "People are complaining" about a particular issue. The General slammed his hand on the table and said, "Don't give me people! If it doesn't have a name it's not a problem." Good advice.
· Don't express your disagreement on Sunday. Don't criticize before or after worship. Wait a few days.
· Make clear you want to hear the pastor's perspective. Too many disagreements are pet peeves or personal preferences. It's always good to listen as much as speaking.
· Seek to be a part of the solution. Criticizing and stating negatives is easy. Most of us are experts at finding problems. Let's work to be part of the solution.
One last thing. Rest assured, this post is not in reaction or response to anything going on in my life or the life of Covenant Church. I found Rainer's thoughts to be a good reminder or refresher on Biblical attitudes that build healthy lives and healthy churches. Amen?
Be of Good Cheer,
Richard
Comments