Leadership Exposes You to Criticism

This past Lent, we ran a capital campaign to renovate and expand our next generation wing. There were several reasons for undertaking the project: The building had old mechanicals that needed to be replaced. We want to invest in the next generation at a time when we need to give them every advantage to grow in their faith. And we wanted to improve our small chapel.

We put together what we thought was a pretty good communication plan. In each homily through the series, we connected the Scripture readings to the project and our growth as Christ followers. Each weekend we revealed something new about the project: from introducing the project to showing a video of the future building to inviting prayers for the next generation. We had an inspiring look to the series and created great brochures. I thought it was a pretty good plan. I wasn’t expecting the pushback and criticism we received in return through the series.

Right now as I write this, I feel my gut all in knots and have a sour taste in my mouth at how wrong I was. I should know better by now. Whenever you lead, whenever you work to take new ground for the kingdom you will get criticized and attacked. I’ve struggled to not allow offense and bitterness to settle into my heart.

Leadership exposes you to criticism because it brings clarity. Father Michael reminded me of this point recently. To lead means to point in a direction and say we are going here and we are not going there. Leadership exposes you to criticism because you are challenging the status quo and many people do not like the status quo disrupted. When you lead a parish into the direction God is taking, you will get criticized for three major reasons.

One, the devil will come at you. We are in a spiritual battle. We have an Enemy who does not want us to succeed and take new ground for the kingdom. It’s naïve not to expect that attempting something new puts a target on your back. If you are doing nothing, the Enemy can ignore you; when you are building God’s kingdom, he will attack you. We do well to remember this so that when the attacks come we are not surprised. If we are prepared we the attacks will not throw us off or distract us.

Second, you will get criticized because of the sin and selfishness in others. Leadership always requires sacrifice of people, asking them to give to a greater cause. Nothing can be accomplished without some level of sacrifice and it is up to leaders to call this forth from people. Not everyone wants to sacrifice. Pride, greed, selfishness get in the way. Some people will want to protect the status quo or what they have and they will criticize you for challenging them to change. And they will complain to you and to others, spreading negativity. Now of course, this means as leaders, we must change first. We must be willing to sacrifice first so that we have the moral authority to challenge others. But even with that moral authority, people will feel threatened.

Third, you will make mistakes. We expose ourselves to criticism when we lead because no one gets it one hundred percent right. I know we could have done better because it was our friends who brought issues to us. Friends of ours who have supported us brought up some ways we could have done things better.

In our capital campaign there are certainly different choices I would have made, there are things in retrospect we could have done better. When you attempt to do something you will not get it perfect. You will make mistakes. Have both the humility and courage to embrace that truth. If you wait until you will get something perfect, you will never move forward. If you don’t humbly admit mistakes you will never grow.

The critics can criticize because there is some truth to what they are saying. But the critics also don’t accomplish anything great. When getting criticized, I go back to the man in the arena speech by Teddy Roosevelt.

“It’s not the critic who counts, he who points out how the strong man stumbles or how the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena whose face is marred with dust and sweat and blood. Who strives valiantly, who errs, who comes up short again and again; who spends himself on a worthy cause, who at the best knows the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place will never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”

I would rather fail daringly greatly than to sit on the sidelines and do nothing.

Along with Teddy Roosevelt, I have returned to a Scripture verse from Acts of the Apostles. The apostles are arrested for healing people and preaching about Jesus. The Sanhedrin arrests them and says to stop it. However, Peter and the other apostles respond, “We must obey God rather than man.” (Acts 5:29) Fear of criticism can keep us from moving forward and taking risks. I’m convinced that often behind no’s to new initiatives is the fear of criticism, the fear of human beings that the book of Proverbs tells us is a trap, that is a snare. The way to conquer that fear is to internalize Acts 5:29. I’m going to obey God rather than human beings. If God is calling us in a direction, our allegiance goes to God and accepts criticism from people.

Leadership exposes us to criticism, but it also opens us up to rewards that only God can give. Don’t let the critics stop you from going where God wants you to go. Don’t let critics allow you to become bitter. Don’t allow the devil to steal your joy. Stay humble. Be brave. The Lord sees your faithfulness. He knows your heart and desire. Take courage and wait on him.

Rooting for you,
Tom