Quote:
Originally Posted by Terry
Problem here is initiative is likened to ambition. As soon as someone exercises the initiative to preach the gospel or go door knocking, he/she may be labeled as "ambitious to have a following". It becomes church culture to bury your extra talents and be one-talented members just like everyone else. Don't exercise initiative and certain don't share from the Bible apart from the ministry.
|
I think if LC leaders were to self-reflect, they would realized that the path to leadership happened through their own initiative and ambitions. Benson is the prime example of this. This is not to say that initiative is bad or that ambition is bad, but there is a double standard. The rank and file are commonly corrected for being too ambitious or for taking their own initiative.
The reality of the situation is that outside the LC, few people are truly content with sitting around and wasting away, setting aside all their usefulness, goals, etc. I believe that this is one of the things that really has make the LC unappealing on a broad scale. People don't want to be dumbed down to parroting a dead man's words. Of course LC members are willing to do this, but they really a minority.
As long as there is this kind of mindset in the LC, it can never amount to anything. When the LC started, all kinds of people came in. Members then took initiative to invite friends and tell people about the LC. If someone were to do the same thing today, it's as
Terry says, they might be labeled as being independent, seeking a following, or I have even heard implications that people who are successful in the gospel can become too "proud".