Jesus took a poll one time. It wasn’t a political poll, because He didn’t (and still doesn’t) need votes. It wasn’t a popularity poll, because He wasn’t (and isn’t) interested in being cool.
It was more of a perception poll:
He asked his inner circle of leaders:
“Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
In other words, “What’s the public perception of my ministry? What’s the word on the street?”
It’s easy for me to spend a lot of time managing and manipulating public perceptions of our ministry. “What was attendance at Union campus? What was the offering total? How many blog hits did we get this week?”
Who do people say that Elevation is?
While that is an important question (Jesus wouldn’t have asked it otherwise), His next question strikes me as even more profound:
“But what about you? Who do you say I am?”
Because that’s what really counted.
See, there’s a time and a place to gage public perception of your life and ministry.
But as a leader, I’ve got to receive regular feedback from those in my inner circle:
“How am I doing as a leader? Where am I not maximizing? How could my communication be clearer? Stronger? In what ways am I bottlenecking innovation? Am I approaching any danger zones that I’m not aware of?”
Public perception is one thing. But it’s the opinion of the people who know me the best that matters the most.
My inner circle consists of my wife, a few staff members, and a few other pastors.
I know the church is growing at an unbelievable rate. I know thousands of people are reading and watching my stuff online.
“But what about you? What do you see God doing in my life from your unique vantage point?”
At the end of the day, the only opinions that register are those of the people closest to me.
If my key people affirm God’s work in my life, the poll of public opinion is closed.