From Goofs to Glory
Have you as a church leader ever stepped in front of a congregation to discover that things aren’t going as expected? Perhaps something didn’t quite come out right in your preaching or teaching; or you began playing a song in the wrong key, or your instrument was out of tune.
Whatever the mishap, we’ve all been there at some point. And usually our only option is to grit our teeth and get through it. We may feel embarrassment, frustration, or any number of sensations. Fortunately, as we grow in our respective leadership roles, such scenarios should occur less frequently.
Nevertheless, mistakes will (and do) take place. They are no respecter of persons, whether novice or veteran. Even so, how might we avoid them in the first place, at least to the extent possible? And when they do occur, what should we do?
(1) Prepare, Prepare, Prepare
With the real estate market, the adage “location, location, location” is everything. With church leadership, we might say that “preparation, preparation, preparation” is everything. This theme rings true in any and all contexts in which we find ourselves: the home, the classroom, the workplace, and so on. But it rings especially true for church leaders. Whatever our role(s) in the local church, be it behind the pulpit, in a classroom, behind an instrument, in the kitchen, or any number of places, we must remember the importance of diligent preparation.
In 2 Timothy 2:15, Paul reminds Timothy, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth” (ESV). Paul would say the same to us today. Just as a soldier prepares for his battles (2 Tim. 2:3-4), an athlete for his competitions (2 Tim. 2:5), and a farmer for his crops (2 Tim. 2:6), so too should we prepare for the ministerial task(s) that God has given. This means preparing over the short-term and over the long-term—for the day-in, day-out, and for the year-in, year-out tasks. It means preparing for our lessons and our sermons, and it means preparing more broadly for the ministry itself. In fact, Paul himself prepared for ministry,
But when He Who had set me apart before I was born, and Who called me by His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son to me, in order that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus (Gal. 1:15-17, ESV).
By so preparing, Paul was in good company. Before Joseph accepted his seat beside Egypt’s Pharaoh, God first prepared him by leading him into the service of Potiphar (Gen. 39:4) and the chief jailer (Gen. 39:21). Before Moses realized his role as Israel’s leader, God first prepared him by leading him to Midian (Exod. 2:11-22) and a burning bush (Exod. 3:1-22). Before Jesus assumed His place on the cross, God first prepared Him by leading Him to the wilderness (Mt. 4:1-11), the Mount of Transfiguration (Mt. 17:1-13), and the Garden of Gethsemane (Mt. 26:36-45).
We see similar examples of preparation of all sorts throughout Scripture. By these, God would remind us about the important place that preparation should occupy in our ministries. We must never allow ourselves to believe that we have arrived, as if we can forego preparation, as if we can get by on our education, experience, charisma, appearance, or anything else. With King David, we must “seek God’s face” in all things and at all times (Ps. 27:8).
Such preemptive efforts will accomplish much in avoiding unnecessary blunders. However, even the best preparation does not shield us completely from such distractions. In those cases, what should we do?
(2) Take Comfort
When mishaps impose themselves on us, we can take comfort for several reasons: theological, soteriological, ecclesial, and eschatological. More specifically, we can take comfort in a God, Who uses our missteps in our sanctification ultimately for the benefit of the church at large and unto eternity.
a. Take Comfort in God
First of all, we can take comfort because God is sovereign, and He will accomplish His tasks. Even the conspiratorial plan of an ant will not foil the will of the all-encompassing dinosaur. Annie Dillard paints a humorous, yet vivid picture:
A high school stage play is more polished than this service we have been rehearsing since the year one. In two thousand years, we have not worked out the kinks. We positively glorify them. Week after week we witness the same miracle: that God is so mighty he can stifle his own laughter. Week after week, we witness the same miracle: that God, for reasons unfathomable, refrains from blowing our dancing bear act to smithereens. Week after week Christ washes the disciples’ dirty feet, handles their very toes, and repeats, “It is all right—believe it or not—to be people.” Who can believe it?[1]
The Bible and church history is chock-full of examples of God’s people making mistakes. And yet “God leads His dear children along,” as the song puts it. For He reigns as our sovereign Leader and Lord, able to cause all things to work together for good to those who love Him (Rom. 8:28; Gen. 50:20). And He uses our mistakes and weaknesses to accomplish His will. In fact, God perfected His power in Paul’s weakness (2 Cor. 12:9). Similarly, God chose a man who was not eloquent, but slow of speech to lead His people out of Egypt (Exod. 4:10).
Whatever our mistakes or insecurities, we mustn’t turn to an unhealthy introspection, wherein it gnaws at our self-consciousness. As Augustine, Luther, Bonhoeffer, and others have reminded us, we must resist the temptation of being curved in on ourselves. Instead, we should allow God to use our stumbles according to His will and in His service.
b. Take Comfort in Community
Second, we can take comfort because we are not alone in our mess-ups. Just as we have examples of the preparation of God’s leaders throughout Scripture, we also have examples of their miscalculations—many of them humorous even.
Joseph dreamt that his brothers would bow to him, only then to tell them, and not just once but twice (no wonder his brothers threw him in a pit) (Gen. 37). Samson told Delilah the secret behind his strength after she conspired with the towns-folk (yeah, that didn’t end well) (Jdgs. 16). David pronounced judgment on himself when the prophet Nathan approached him (walked right into that one) (2 Sam. 12). Jonah literally told his shipmates that he was probably the reason that a tempest threatened their very lives (well of course they threw him overboard) (Jon. 1:1-16).
And Peter didn’t know where to stop. After confessing Jesus as the Christ, He forbad Him from suffering and dying (Mt. 16:13-23). He asked to build three tents on the Mount of Transfiguration for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah (Mt. 17:4). He balked at Jesus washing his feet (Jn. 13:8). He drew his sword and loped off Malchus’ ear, even after Jesus explained (several times by the way) that He must suffer and die (Jn. 18:10-11). He contended that he would never fall from Jesus (Mt. 26:33), only then to fall asleep when Jesus asked him to keep watch (Mt. 26:36-46), and to deny Him three times (Mt. 26:69-75). Talk about putting your foot in your mouth, over and over again.
These Bible blunders offer us guidance and hope. We will mess up. As Alexander Pope put it, “To err is human.”[2] Whether our mistakes are serious or silly or somewhere in between, God can (and does) bring us through them though. Where they are serious, moral or otherwise, the repercussions can be difficult, but God is faithful. Where they are silly, we are reminded to not take ourselves so seriously; it’s okay to laugh at ourselves.
Conclusion
Brother or sister in Christ, have you made a blunder of things? Take heart, cheer up, and be encouraged. You’re in good company! So has the rest of your faith family. While we do our best to avoid these scenarios in the first place through preparation, preparation, preparation, we will mess up. Be our slips serious or light, we can learn from the example of those who have gone before us, and we can remember that God is sovereign, able to bring good from bad.
Especially for those humorous ones though (that usually aren’t as funny in the moment for whatever reason), perhaps we’ll recline with our faith family one day in the new heaven and new earth, chuckling over those goofs from all those years ago. Perhaps we’ll laugh and cry so hard that our stomachs hurt as we recall how our sovereign Lord transformed our goofs for His glory.
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[1] Annie Dillard, Teaching a Stone to Talk: Expeditions and Encounters (New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1982), 32.
[2] Alexander Pope, “An Essay on Criticism,” accessible at http://poetry.eserver.org/essay-on-criticism.html.
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