2 Make room for us in your hearts. We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have exploited no one. 3 I do not say this to condemn you; I have said before that you have such a place in our hearts that we would live or die with you. 4 I have spoken to you with great frankness; I take great pride in you. I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds. 2 Corinthians 7:2-4

Paul was not going away soon. Some at Corinth wished it but he was standing his ground. When you have a cause you truly believe in, you’ll go to great lengths to defend your position and reputation. As I’ve mentioned earlier, Paul was a Type A personality and rubbed people the wrong way with his abruptness and passion. He obviously liked to have things done his way. That’s not always a bad leadership quality. He got things done. As modern-day missionary/evangelist George Verwer used to say, for every one of him on the field, there were dozens who had to pick up the pieces after he left. On the same line of thinking, he joked that he probably caused numerous heart attacks among his staff because of his Type A-ness.

Paul probably had similar characteristics.

When a speaker from a large ministry comes to your church, there are probably many working behind the scenes to make it all happen. Even in large ministries such as the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan’s Purse, there are countless and nameless individuals working behind the scenes to make it all work. Very few go it alone because they know how important having a quality staff can be.

If you get a chance this week, write and send an encouraging email to the secretaries and assistants you know. They don’t get praised often enough for the work they do.