A Wet Spot on the Pavement

“In the old days, this trick had to be accomplished by means of respectful titles like the ‘Rev.’ But nowadays, in these egalitarian times, the attitude of spiritual conceit has had to be a little more creative, and a pastor shows his prowess in humility by asking people to call him Joe. Behind the scenes he is a fierce, hard-driving CEO, and reads those CEO magazines and acts like a CEO on airplanes, right down to ogling the flight attendants in first class. But out in front of the congregation, sitting on that stool, fitted out in a Mr. Rogers cardigan, he is open, transparent, and shares the struggles of his heart — the struggles of a simple guy . . . named Joe. He is about as deep as a wet spot on the pavement” (A Serrated Edge, p. 36).