Few people are truly aware of the really weird things said to pastors—the constant requests, complaints and criticisms pastors and other church leaders receive. I must admit, however, I was surprised when I asked church leaders on Twitter to share some of the more unusual comments they have received. I was first surprised at how many responded. But I was most surprised at the really strange things people tell pastors and other church leaders.
Many of the comments related to using the Bible too much or to being too evangelistic. I should make those a blog post by themselves.
I narrowed my selection to 25, but it could have been much higher. I left off many great things said to pastors to keep this post manageable. I’ve only made minor wording changes to some of these. For the most part, I received these quotes just as you are seeing them. The parenthetical words after each comment represent my off-the-cuff commentary.
25 Really Strange Things Said to Pastors
1. “We need a small group for cat lovers.” (I guess they could serve Meow Mix as a snack.)
2. “You need to change your voice.” (Yes ma’am. I’ll try to have that done by next week.)
3. “Our expensive coffee is attracting too many hipsters.” (Yep. You don’t want too many of those hipsters in your church.)
4. “Preachers who don’t wear suits and ties aren’t saved. It’s in the Bible.” (I should have known that’s what Jesus and Paul wore.)
5. “Your socks are distracting.” (I understand. I’ll stop wearing socks.)
6. “You shouldn’t make people leave the youth group after they graduate.” (It’s going to get really weird by the time they turn 70 years old.)
7. “I don’t like the color of the towels in the women’s restroom.” (I don’t understand. They match the towels in the men’s restroom.)
8. “We need to start attracting more normal people at church.” (So, you will be leaving the church, I presume.)
9. “I developed cancer because you don’t preach from the KJV.” (Major medical announcement! New carcinogen discovered!)
10. “Your wife never compliments me about my hair or dress.” (There could be a reason for that.)
