Our Own Worst Critic

“It’s never as bad as you think it is….” These words had a calming effect on me as my boss sat across from me and dissected my latest event. However, the next words out of his mouth weren’t as warm and fuzzy: “…..and it’s never as good as you think it is.”

Wow, thanks boss, you’re as good of a cheerleader as I am a body builder!

However, as I have accumulated some more birthdays in my life, this has been a large source of encouragement for me. We can be the worst/best critic in the world. 20 more kids showed up and we want to hang a banner across our room that says “Mission Accomplished!” When 20 less kids show up we’re on Facebook trying to find our old high school buddies, seeing if they want to start that traveling drama club you once dreamed about.

Sometimes we have to take a step back, brush the dirt off our knees or the confetti out of our hair, and keep on keeping on. If you think about it, this is how we got into this whole mess anyway. No, not student ministry—following Jesus. Colossians 2:6 says, “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him,” or as Wimber used to say, “The way in is the way on.”

That “way in” was simply saying “yes.” “Yes” when life is fine and dandy. “Yes” when life has been punching you in the throat for the past month. And “yes” when seven parents just called you crying and saying “Thank you for investing in my kid!” “Yes” when seven parents called you and just cried.

So from one leader to another, keep your head up because it’s not as bad as you think it is…and we’ll keep it at that!