Compliments

Sometimes as a preacher and pastor, I get compliments that I'm not sure what to do with. Usually I just say "thank you", and let it go. But sometimes, the compliments go deeper than usual, which often leads to conversations. I like those.

On Sunday, after preaching on a text from Galatians 4 that is not included in the Revised Common Lectionary, I got quite a few compliments. The one that stuck in my mind as I reflected on the day was the person who said, "Your sermon was very educational today." Typically, I said "thank you", but as I thought about it later in the day, I wondered if it truly was a compliment, or a backhanded way of saying "that was over my head, and a sermon shouldn't require a PhD".

Over the years I've gotten a few compliments on my preaching (and a few complaints) that have caused me some soul searching. Once, at my first church in Illinois, the Associate Superintendent of our conference was visiting with his wife. After the service, she approached me, shook my hand, and said "that was like water to a drowning man." It wasn't until 2 days later that I realized that's not such a good thing. Then there was the time when a parishioner told me that he enjoyed when I preached, as I "didn't say too much." Ouch.

All this got me thinking about what was the best compliment about my preaching that I've ever received. Interestingly, it was given to me by someone trying not to compliment me. A former parishioner of a church I served met with me to talk about why he was leaving our church. As we talked, he said that one of the issues he had with my preaching was that I preached "too much about grace, and didn't point enough fingers at the sins and sinners." He wanted more focus on sin, and less on salvation. More focus on retribution, and less on forgiveness. I was too focused on God's free gift of grace in Jesus Christ.

It wasn't intended to be, but I'm pretty sure that was the best compliment I've ever received when it comes to my preaching.

Maybe the best compliments are always that way.