Bill sat across from his counselor and recounted the pain of the last eighteen months. After nine years at First Church, he had taken a well-deserved sabbatical to travel, reflect, study, and pray. On his first Sunday back at the church, he found a sealed envelope conspicuously placed in the middle of his desk. It was an anonymous petition asking for his resignation. The ensuing months were a blur of board meetings, interventions by denominational officials, listening posts with members of the congregation, and sleepless nights. He had survived the ordeal (he thought) but it had clearly taken an emotional toll. He now wondered if he should even remain in parish ministry. He pondered with his counselor: “What red flags did I miss? What should I have done differently? Why does this seem to be happening so frequently to me and my colleagues?”
via alban.org
Most pastors score very high in emotional intelligence, but those who struggle with pastoral leadership usually need to develop better conflict-management skills. Many pastors are too accommodating and too "avoiding" to remain healthy for the long haul of ministry.
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