Driscoll goes on to argue that people at congregations where he is not physically present are more engaged in giving, small group participation, church membership, and service because he is not there. His reasoning is that these congregants are more focused on the mission of the church than they are on him.
A particularly odd moment of the discussion occurs when Dever asks Driscoll if he thinks it is important for pastors to be able to see an audience’s response when they are preaching. Driscoll immediately shakes his head and says, ”I’m a total introvert.” Later he says, “I’m just part of the set design” and that he is too focused on listening to the Holy Spirit to consider the audience’s response, implying the two considerations are mutually exclusive.
No doubt the conversation was intended to be three church leaders listening to and learning from one another. Instead, it became about Driscoll and MacDonald winning an argument. This becomes even more evident near the end when Dever is pushing back and trying to clarify a point. Driscoll and MacDonald shut him down and Driscoll says, “I just beat you. And you just changed the topic.”
