"people who complain, care"

Seth Goodin has a post that says a key feature to making change is caring enough to want to make the change.

He wrote that he visited the Apple store in NYC on 14th Street, where the two front doors don't close. When customers walk in or out, the door won't close behind them. Even with the temperature outside about 45, the store workers just left both doors open. They say that customers complain all the time, but it just can't be fixed.

His conclusion is that people who complain, care. "If no one cares, you've got trouble. Goal one is getting people to care. Goal two: listening to them."

I've read church growth consultants say the problems between pastors and parishoners is a sign of unspiritual lay people, and the pastor just needs to ask them to leave. Others will say that since the pastor is the senior Christian in the congregation, his word it truth, and anyone who opposes anything he wants is sinning.

Tell that to prophets Nathan, or Ezra, or Isaiah, calling their leaders to account. Tell that to Peter - or Jesus - calling the religious leaders to account.

Maybe, just maybe, there are godly lay people in the church that need to be listened to, and then given permission to help fix the problems their pastor hasn't had the wisdom to address.