How to Handle Criticism That All God’s Servants Receive

A pastor’s church board criticized him in front of the congregation. They read a list of his inadequacies and shortcomings. They fired him.

Shooting him would have been more humane. He left the full-time ministry for more than a year, trying to reassemble the broken pieces of his life.

Leaders, like lightning rods, attract bolts of criticism. That is as sure as sunrise and sunset.

That is also true of anyone who tries to do something significant for God. Jesus faced it repeatedly. Being insulted and denounced while doing God’s work is a given.

Criticism derails some of us. Our self-esteem and sense of working for God evaporate in an eyeblink. Let us consider how to handle criticism, modeling ourselves after Nehemiah.

I doubt Nehemiah anticipated criticism when he committed to rebuilding Jerusalem’s wall. Soon after the work started, however, Sanballat ridiculed the project. He said they could not complete it. He magnified the task and minimized the workers.

Tobiah said a fox walking on the wall would crumble it. Both critics ignored the difference God could make.

Criticism often draws painful attention to our inadequacies and reminds us of what we cannot do. The enemy of the faith celebrates when we focus on our weaknesses. We all have them.

He uses discouragement to tire us physically and emotionally. The exhaustion that discouragement produces provides fertile soil for negative thinking to sprout like weeds in the garden of our hearts.

When that happens, our burdens, obstacles, and defeats block our view of God and hamstring our hope. We feel incompetent and unworthy. Our spirits turn gray long before our hair does.

Do we believe God can use us? The enemy will challenge that conviction. To overcome discouragement, we need to adjust our perspective. We must let God be God (Nehemiah 4:4-5).

He never wrings His hands and paces nervously, wondering how to deal with our problems. He allows and uses them to shape us while He maintains control.

The right perspective includes recognizing that God is in control and cooperating with Him to serve despite opposition. Work continued on the wall because the people worked with all their hearts (Nehemiah 4:6).

Prayer is vital when the hurricane winds of opposition roar. We must also do something. Nehemiah wrote, “But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat” (Nehemiah 4:9 NIV). He recognized God’s control yet took a practical step to counter the opposition. That is the exit from the dark valley of discouragement.

We must do something. God gives us the wisdom to know what (James 1:5). We do not count our critics. We weigh them.

If what they say is true, we must change our ways. If it is not, we must not let them distract us from the work God has given us. What is your takeaway? See additional free spiritual growth resources for Christians.   #freediscipleshipresources #freeevangelismresources #freechristianleadershipresources 

God has empowered me to write His Power for Your Weakness—260 Steps Toward Spiritual Strength. It’s a free, evangelistic, devotional, and discipleship e-book. Pastors have used it in Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia to lead 6,714 people to Christ and teach the basics of Christianity to 15,936 people. I invite you to explore and use it in your setting.

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