I totally relate to this from an article about author N.D. Wilson.
N. D. Wilson had an instructive beginning to his life as a writer. Like many writers, the spark was lit when he was a child. Unlike most writers, that spark came in the form of a challenge from his father. The young Wilson had a habit of complaining about the books he read. So his father laid down this gauntlet: if you don’t like this or that story, write a better one yourself.
Thus began Mr. Wilson’s writing journey. I like this story because Wilson’s father, either wittingly or unwittingly, came up with the best solution to a common experience—displeasure with someone else’s work. The author, the poet, the playwright, the composer—they didn’t get it right. He or she should have gotten to the end quicker, should have brought more tension to the middle, made the protagonist more sympathetic…
Wilson’s father had the right idea. Go do better yourself.
Simple, but very instructive.
I see a clear takeaway point for my calling as a dad and a leader in the church.
Anyone can complain. That’s easy. Anyone can approach me with a complaint. Many do. But then what?
Don’t just bring a complaint. Bring a solution. Complaining is just… complaining. It only helps if it leads to improvement. A wise parent will push that complaint into an improvement. A wise son will benefit from the push. N.D. Wilson did. A wise elder in the church will use a complaint as an opportunity for the complainer to (if appropriate) take a level of ownership toward improvement. Isn’t that what leadership is all about?