Pain is a constant companion in ministry. In fact, if you aren't experiencing pain, than you probably aren't really leading anyone. It's also true that the difference of where you are and where God wants you to be may be the pain you are unwilling to endure.
Craig encouraged me to do three things with my pain. I'll share them with you this week:
1. Embrace your pain threshold for unjustified criticism and the desire to please people.
- I've realized that the more our church has grown the more I have been personally criticized as a leader.
- This week I've been called "a blasphemer", "a false teacher", "one who speaks with a forked tongue", that I have "the spirit of lucifer", "that we have en graven images in our church", that "I'm a deceiving shepherd", that we use propaganda and marketing to increase our attendance", that we aren't a deep church, ad nauseum - and that was just this week :)
- Paul endured ridiculous amounts of pain to promote the gospel. Read 2 Corinthians 11:16ff.
- If you aren't hurting then you aren't leading.
- If you aren't experiencing criticism than you aren't preaching the Gospel because the Gospel if offensive - especially to those with a self-righteous, Pharisaical spirit.
- The reality is that you can't please everybody.
- The quickest way to forget what God thinks about you is to be consumed with what others think of you.
- I can't please everyone, but I can please God.
More tomorrow...
