I spend a lot of time in hospitals. There are not many weeks in the year that pass without me stepping into a hospital to see a member of our church family who is about to have surgery, recovering from surgery, or spending time healing. If the doctor steps in when I am there I always offer to leave the room, but I am rarely asked by a church member to do so. As I hear the conversation between the patient and the doctor, it is clear that the doctor is the expert in the room, and I (along with any family members present) am praying that the patient will do exactly what the doctor says. After the information is gathered from tests, the doctor is the one who prescribes exactly what should be done. I don’t think I have ever heard a patient listen to the doctor’s plan of treatment, and then reply with an alternative plan that is as hopeful as the doctor’s. The doctor is the expert, and even if one doesn’t like the plan, one has the most hope for a meaningful recovery if that plan is followed.
There are pastors who think they are the doctors and everyone else in the church is the patient. These pastors view themselves as the expert, the final word. These pastors think that if they can only get the church to follow their plan, preferences, and ideas, the church will be fruitful and fully live into God’s mission in the community and world. In their estimation their opinion is the only one that should be taken seriously, and they have little time for suggestions, observations, and constructive criticism.
This is not the image of a pastor that I embrace or aspire to, and it is not how I view my myself or our church family. I believe that every Christian at May Memorial is called by God to help our church family live into the fullness of God’s mission. Every Christian at May Memorial can be led by God’s Holy Spirit, and when the Holy Spirit impresses something on someone’s heart about what we can do, or what we can do better, I want to hear it.
I will listen to you.
I believe that theological education is essential for the vocation of a pastor. But seminary does give a man or a woman God’s unique vision for a particular congregation. A pastor along with the church, with hearts open to God’s leading, discover through committed dialog how to live into God’s mission for the church. Your voice is essential.
This does not mean every idea is a workable idea. I have had many bad ideas that did not work. This also does not mean that “gossipy” complaints or the use of the “anonymous we” is healthy for churches either. But healthy dialog in which constructive ideas are used to improve May Memorial is essential for our church life, and I will listen to you.
There are no ideas that are too “outside the box” for me to hear. All ideas are worthy to be spoken and heard, and it is essential that you share those. God uses each Christian who is a part of the May Memorial family to form us and guide us into the church that God is calling us to be, and I pray that each member feels the freedom to come to me and share your ideas.
My door is always open. I will listen to you.