Another day, another little leadership lesson. At Modesto Covenant, they have upgraded to a new printer. And while this printer is nice and has better print quality – it has caused some technical issues. Some people are having a hard time getting the printer to work for them, others could only get it to work when the professional came in to get it done. On top of these, the new features mean people have to learn new ways to print and get things done – nothing is in the same place! Is this really worth all of the frustration?
Yes. Today I printed our new devotion cards – and I could clearly see a difference in print quality. Of course, that may be because I am a designer, and really care about color representation and dpi clarity (resolution). At MCC, they have been constantly trying to increase the quality of their visual design – having a graphic designer on staff part time, changing their bulletin, updating their website, and more. This is not vanity, this is giving God our best in a world that is very visual, and understanding design as art that can be done as an act of worship to Jesus. These are hard steps to take – MCC has been willing to take them – the printer challenge is just another step in continuing to elevate ministry.
All of this hit my mind at the same time today. As techie as I am, even I was having problems getting the printer to work for me (I even sent something to a different printer by accident – that was embarrassing!). But as soon as I saw the quality of the card I had printed, I knew it was worth the trouble. The first thing I did was go and tell the person who had made the decision – “Thank You.” She appreciated that. Why? Because when you make a hard decision that brings problems and people complain – you take it hard. As a leader you want the new things to come in, wow everyone, work perfectly, and elevate everything. That almost never happens. Change is hard, problems happen – we don’t want them to happen, but there is often a price to pay to elevate ministry. So I told her “thank you”, and “hang in there” – these changes are hard, but I think it is worth it.
My encouragement to you who are reading this is to be willing to give God your best. Your BEST. That will often mean things and systems need to change – we are constantly trying to elevate what we are doing for the Lord Jesus. You will have people question you. People will complain – all change is hard. Some of those complaints won’t be against you specifically, but you feel them because you made the hard choice. This can happen in parenting, work, leadership, or our personal lives. Stay strong, make the right hard choices, and continue to give God your best. It is worth it!
