Leaders set the mood

Those of you who know me know that for several years I managed a small  business our family owned.  The first several years was enjoyable and profitable.  (Funny how those things go together!)  The last several years of owning that business it was neither of those things.  A combination of the economy turning sour and several mistakes I made eventually led to our having to close the company.  I have written an e-book about those mistakes that is available here.

One of the mistakes I made was that I stopped being positive about the company and its future.  I would go into the office obviously discouraged and downcast.  I had plenty of good reasons for feeling that way, but my attitude affected everyone who worked there.  Because of me it was not a pleasant place to work.  Our folks were trying and working hard, but I'm sure they didn't feel their efforts were appreciated by me.  I'm also sure there were many days they were hoping I wouldn't even show up because my depressed attitude brought everyone else down.

Leaders do set the mood for the organization they lead, and this is true of churches as well.  As I meet with pastors I'm often bothered by how many have such negative feelings towards their current ministries and members in their congregations.  When I visit their churches I'm not surprised that it is not an exciting place of worship and ministry.  One could ask the chicken and egg question, I suppose.  Is the negative atmosphere in the church the cause of the pastor's discouragement or is the pastor's attitude responsible for the negative atmosphere?  Either could be true for different churches, but one thing I know is that things will never turn around in the church until the pastor's attitude towards it changes.  Until the pastor becomes positive about the opportunities that exist in the church no one else there will, and things will continue their downward spiral.

In 1994 H. B. London, Jr. and Neil Wiseman wrote what I believe to be a classic for pastors titled The Heart of a Great Pastor: How to Grow Stronger and Thrive Wherever God Has Planted You.  One of the things they wrote in their book has stuck with me all these years: "Most desirable places were difficult until a previous pastor loved the church into greatness."  Throughout the book they emphasize that our current ministries are holy ground and should be treated as such.  Rather than complain about how difficult our churches are, our attitude should be that God has called us to this place for such a time as this.  The church you currently serve will either be better or worse when you leave it, and our intention should be that it will be better.  What might happen if, instead of complaining and criticizing, we determined we would love it into greatness?

This doesn't ignore the fact that churches can be difficult to lead.  I served as a pastor for twenty years so I understand the frustration that comes with the position.  As I've told people in the past, I resigned from my church many times on a Monday morning.  I just had the good sense not to tell anyone but God, and before the week was over he was always able to help me begin to see things through his eyes.  I often told our congregation in my messages how much I loved them and how much they meant to me, and I was quite honest when I said those things.  The church was a much different place when I left that it was when I arrived, and I believe part of the reason was that they had a pastor who loved them.

Since my business closed I've often wondered why I could take that same positive attitude to that endeavor that I had with the church, and I've not found an answer to that question.  I am certain if I projected the negative emotions I felt with the business onto the church that the church would have never become the positive place it was when I left.  Just know this, as a leader in your church your attitudes will set the mood for the entire church.