Pastors are people.  Some may think that pastors are invincible and unbreakable.  But they are real people who can really be hurt.

If you need some ideas to hurt your pastor,  one of the following approaches will work just fine.  But, if you are like most good church members, you want the best for your pastor. So just do the opposite of these 10.

And if you are worried that your pastor will not remain humble unless someone puts him in his place, don’t worry. There will always be plenty of those other church members around.

So, if you really want to hurt your pastor, follow these guidelines carefully.

1.  Tell him what an easy job he has.   Some believe that the pastor only works on Sunday.  That he works about 12 hours a week,  can take off anytime,  and has several days off.

2.  Send him anonymous hate mail and complaints.    After hurling all kinds of venom and hate in an anonymous letter.  The letter is “signed”   “A concerned member and friend.”  This does not help. It only creates anger,  frustration, and paranoia.  Not to mention its very cowardly.

3.  Don’t let him be human.  Pastors have issues and problems like the rest of us.  They have bad days from time to time. Oh, and they like to have fun and relax as well.

4.  Assume all complaints against him are valid.   Pastors become the brunt of gossip, lies, and  accusations many of which are not true at all. 

5.  Criticize his family.  Few things are as painful to pastors as criticizing their families.  They are trying their best to provide, nurture, and protect their families,  while taking care of the families in the church as well.

6.  Never give him the benefit of the doubt.  No pastor says it right, does it right, handles it right all the time.  In those times when they “miss it”  give them the benefit of the doubt, knowing that may not have been his intent.

7.  Remain silent when your long time friends attack his character and family.  Every pastor will be the brunt of gossip, lies, and attack.  The best way to ensure that this continues to happen is to say nothing,  especially if its not true.

8.  Compare your pastors preaching and ministry unfavorably to your “favorite” preacher.   Most pastors work really hard to prepare sound messages week in and week out.  The average member has no idea what it takes to prepare a message.  To compare him to another preacher can be discouraging and unfair.

9.  Tell him he makes too much money.   The average pastor doesn’t really make much money.  But there are some members who would like to make the pastor feel bad about what he does receive.