I am taking a little break from sermon prep for my next Sunday Morning opportunity. Part of the sermon is talking about Jesus’ response to the Pharisees’ question about paying taxes to Caesar. I love the fact that Jesus doesn’t play their games. He doesn’t allow himself to come down to the the level of the critics and instead stays focused on what God has called him to do. And that’s really his response to his critics. Brilliant!
As a pastor I have to deal with criticism. No one (that I know of) is trying to kill me. But it seems like everyone knows how to do my job better than I do. And the thing that I constantly have to come back to is what has God called me to do? What am I to give back to God? That is the ultimate thing that I have to be focused on. Critics come and go and they have their opinions but those are not the most important opinions. God’s is the only opinion that matters.
What are the critics saying to you? What is God calling you to do? If you are following God you will always have critics. Something about God moving in people’s lives drives the religious or the stubborn crazy. So be kind and respectful to your critics but don’t let them change your path. Don’t let them trip you up. And most importantly don’t fight with them, don’t play their games.
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