They say that perception is reality, and I believe that it is.
For example, being a public figure for most of my life has forced me to make peace with
the fact that, for the most part, some people are going to think what they are going to think about
you, regardless of what you do or say, because they are perceiving you and what you
do through the lens of their own unique life-experience, and their own particular world-view, shaped by their own personal history.
It's also been said that we
don't see the world as it is, we see it as we are, and I also believe that that is true.
It's true for all of us.
But when you are in the public eye and you are vocal about a lot of
things, and/or you bring about any kind of significant change in the world, it's especially true that at any given time you will most likely be simultaneously
liked and disliked...received and rejected...understood and misunderstood. It comes with the territory, and you really can't take any of it too seriously.
In the same way that a self-fulfilling prophecy works, when one
internalizes and maintains a series of festering offenses, they can't help but
look for certain actions and/or behaviors from the object of the offense, and
the more they look for, the more they see. Over time they systematically build a case against that person, and when it all finally comes out in a letter or email for whatever reason, they throw everything but the kitchen sink at them.
I believe that everyone has the right to be heard, and I believe in free speech. Jesus even said to go to a brother or sister with whom you are offended and deal with it, so I'm not saying that you shouldn't express yourself when necessary.
I believe that everyone has the right to be heard, and I believe in free speech. Jesus even said to go to a brother or sister with whom you are offended and deal with it, so I'm not saying that you shouldn't express yourself when necessary.
But if you are just offended at one thing after another with a particular person...if everything they do sets you off...if they can't do anything right as far as you're concerned...then you probably need to examine what's going on with you, and why you are so unhappy with the world...or with yourself.
As for me, I wasted enough time over the years trying to respond to my critics, and it never profited me anything. I used to spend endless hours, painstakingly answering my complaint letters, item by item, in an attempt to vindicate myself and tell the offended individual the way that things were from my point of view (and I've written some doozies over the years), but it never changed anything for the better. It certainly didn't change any one's mind about me.
So, if I've offended you for anything, I apologize. If something about me needs to change, I'll do what I can to change it. But don't expect a return letter if you send me a ridiculously negative one. I just don't do that any more.
soooo......
Am I a bad pastor? Yes.
Is CHURCH IN THE NOW a great church? Yes.
Is CHURCH IN THE NOW a bad church? Yes.
The answer to questions like these is always "yes"...in this case it all depends on your perception of me or of the church.The glass is both empty and full, depending on how you see it.
My hope is that you will see the positive, but I can't make you do that. I can only do what I do, learn from my mistakes, and try to be the best version of me that I can be.
That's all any of us can do.
I love all with the love that "bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things"...I'm in a good place in my life...a real season of restoration...and I live in the now. If you can't forgive me for whatever it is you don't like about me, or for whatever you perceive I did or didn't do to or for you, then that's something you're going to have to work through. My heart is clear, and I am walking in the revelation of the word I delivered last Sunday, so I will simply say...
AMEN
I love all with the love that "bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things"...I'm in a good place in my life...a real season of restoration...and I live in the now. If you can't forgive me for whatever it is you don't like about me, or for whatever you perceive I did or didn't do to or for you, then that's something you're going to have to work through. My heart is clear, and I am walking in the revelation of the word I delivered last Sunday, so I will simply say...
AMEN
Joi Pelzer said...
ReplyDeleteBishiop u r Amazn.
Amen.
ReplyDeleteKarl McIntosh Cobos said...
ReplyDelete...enjoyed reading the blog...good words and insights.
Julianne Marchman said...
ReplyDeleteGood stuff!