Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Hubris and Respect
- Work through his or her system – If he or she has an assistant, use that process
- Carry the burden – Assume responsibility for setting up appointment.
- Come prepared
- Get to the point
- Be punctual
- Honor the time
- Be appreciative
I read that and I got kind of angry. That is good advice when dealing with congresspersons and executives - but Edmondson writes about church leaders and I find that advice deeply ugly in that setting.
The system he describes is about doing things and running something. But the church is first and foremost about people. If it was about the institution, Christ would have set one up. Yes, the pastor of a big church is too busy to give "that personal touch" to everybody - heck, there are just too many everybodies in some churches nowadays. But that said, there is something essentially dehumanizing in saying - "I'm busy, I don't have time for you personally, get to business and get out."
Yes, I hear there is a responsibility on the leader to be gracious, but I'm here to tell you, there is nothing gracious about that list. Christ would stop sermons to deal with one individual.
If you are a pastor and you are so busy that you have to publish something like this to your flock - I'd check my schedule, my delegating abilities, and my call - cause that ain't pastoring.
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