Church Workers Are People Too

Hello, friends.

My heart hurts today. I'm not going to share all of the details, because they're not mine to tell, but here's the gist: a pastor I know was ousted by his congregation.

On behalf of church workers everywhere, please remember that church workers are people too. We are sinners and saints, just like you. We aren't perfect - and God knew that when He called us to our churches. He called us there anyway. So if you have an issue with a church worker, keep these three things in mind:

1) Go talk to them. That sounds obvious, but in a conflict, our first reaction is often to talk about it to someone else. I'm guilty of that. Go talk to the church worker and be willing to work things out. Don't charge into their office and yell at them until they agree with you. Go into the conversation with an open mind and the desire to find a solution that works for both of you.

2) Know that church workers cannot read minds. Something that seems obvious to you might not be obvious to them. And then there's the other side of the coin - something that seems obvious to them might not be obvious to you. Church workers generally have reasons for the things they do. If you're concerned about something, ask about their reasoning before you judge.

3) Have compassion. When the aforementioned congregation ousted their pastor, they also ousted that pastor's wife and children from their home and school. Before the situation got to this point, the congregation had reduced the pastor's salary so much that the family was living on food stamps. It baffles me that a church could have so little compassion for those kids, if nothing else.

Please, please, please. Don't let this happen anywhere else. Stand up for your church workers, imperfect as they may be. They are people too, and they deserve your kindness and respect.

(And if you know of a vacant congregation, let me know.)