What should I do?

I wrote an article many years ago about people's attitude toward their minister. It explore the fine line of expectation that ministers must walk. I want to reproduce that article and then give some reflections and thoughts after.

If he is young, he lacks experience; if his hair is gray, he is too old.
If he has five or six children, he has too many; if he has none, he is setting a bad example.
If his wife sings in the choir, she is too forward; if she doesn't, she is not interested in her husband's work.
If he speaks from notes, his sermons are canned and dry; if he speaks extemporaneously, he is not deep.
If he spends too much time in study, he neglects his people; is he visits, he is a gadabout.
If he suggests improvements, he is a dictator; if he makes no suggestions, he is a figurehead.
If he uses too many illustrations, he neglects the Bible; if not enough, he is unclear.
If he condemns sin, he is cranky; if he doesn’t, he is a compromiser.
If he preaches over 30 minutes, he is windy; if less, he is lazy.
If he preaches the truth, he is offensive; if he does not, he is a hypocrite.
If he fails to please everybody, he is hurting the church; if he does try to please everybody, he has no convictions.
If he preaches the tithe, he is a money grubber; if he does not, he is failing to develop his people. If he receives a large salary, he is a mercenary; if a small salary, it proves he isn’t worth much.
If he is the only preacher, the people tire of just one man; if he invites guest preachers, he is shirking his responsibilities.
If he never takes a day off, he is a workaholic; if he plays golf or goes fishing, he is irresponsible.

Now some will say that I'm writing this out of sour grapes. The truth is I am not bitter or soured on the ministry in any way. I wrote this in August of 1997. It was republished soon after moving to Colorado. And now again in 2010.

This is a reflection on the ways that people will view their minister. It can't be helped. The minister cannot control peoples expectations, especially unspoken ones. There is no telling what people, no matter how loving they are, will think of a minister. Nor is there any way to control it. The minister is called of God not of men. Let me give you an example.

The Apostle Paul annoyed the heck out of people. He didn't leave anyone out; he was an equal opportunity annoyer. Gentiles, Jews, Romans, Greeks, slaves, freemen, faithful, hypocrites, mothers, father, friends, enemies, the list could go on. And he did this everywhere he went.

Like this one time he was walking through this one town, minding his own business, and this random soothsayer girl comes up behind his and starts shouting that Paul is "a servant of the most high God and he's here to tell you the way to be saved." She does this for several days. Finally Paul turns around and tells the spirit that is troubling her to "get out!" Well that isn't to irritating but apparently this girl was owned by some guys who were pimping her as a fortune teller and making quite a handsome profit.

Well these guys realized that their cash cow dried up and they were out of business. They grabbed Paul and his friend and hauled them before the hangin' judge saying "these guys have created an uproar in the the whole city." This stirred up a crowd. The mob decided to attack. So the magistrate beat Paul and Silas and threw them in jail. Problem solved, right, wrong. Paul sang all night long. Then God caused a miracle, the jail busted open and Paul was free. But he didn't leave. In fact, he stayed and brought the jailer, and a bunch other, to Christ and baptized them.

Well you'd probably think the story ends there, but you'd be wrong. Some officers came to release Paul, but he still wouldn't go. At that time a Roman citizen could not be publicly humiliated the way Paul had been. Paul could have let it go. But he didn't. He made the magistrate come and apologize in person. They judge begged Paul to leave the city. He didn't.

Something similar happened in the next town Paul visited. And when those people heard Paul was in another town near by, they sent a gang to that town to finish Paul off. This continued with Paul throughout his life.

Paul was the same before God called him into ministry as he was afterward. People constatnly misread, misinterpreted , and misunderstood Paul. He was this short, bald, red-faced, scruffy-looking little man who I've always pictured as looking and sounding just like Groundskeeper Willy.

Could Paul control people's expectations of him? Could he help them process their inner feelings and viewpoints of him? No. And neither can I do that.

People will think what they want to think. My job is to be who God made me to be; to follow Him no matter what obstacles may be in my way. My purpose is to make Him look good, not me. To obey His will, go where He leads, say what He would have me say.

If a minister's life points to anything but God amazing ability to work with anybody, it's wasted. Let the critics say what they will. Who are they really criticizing?