Pastors are used to being the targets of jokes. It goes with the territory.

A parishioner had undergone a serious operation and was still under the influence of the sedative when his pastor came, so the pastor just said a prayer and left. The next day he returned and asked the patient if he had been aware of his visit. “I vaguely remember your visit yesterday. I remember opening my eyes and thinking 'I can't be in Heaven because here is my pastor!"

We are accustomed to being the targets of jokes and we are accustomed to being targets of criticism. You may have seen a letter in the “Dear Abby" column several years ago. It read like this: Dear Abby:

One of the toughest tasks a church faces is choosing a good minister. A member of an official board undergoing this painful process finally l…