What makes expectations so difficult is that they come in different shapes: scriptural and cultural, external and internal, legitimate and frivolous (yet likely to be a problem if you say no). To help sort these, LEADERSHIP gathered the following special section.
WHAT Is My Role? People’s expectations can cause us to lose sight of our central calling. Addressing this question are six leaders in “Wing Walkers” and Eugene Peterson in “Lashed to the Mast.”
CAN I Be What People Expect? When people want Rev. Media Preacher and you’re not, what do you do? See “Percentage Preacher.” When they want a shepherd and you’re more a teacher—see “Grating Expectations.”
THIS Church Isn’t What I Expected. A painful reality. Dave Hansen admits, “When I’m mad at the church … I like to crawl into a spot in my brain reserved for my ideal church” “The Church of Your Dreams.”
WHEN Expectations Clash. “Conflicting visions for the church” is the number-*one reason why pastors are fired or forced to resign. Don’t miss the startling results of Leadership’s new, nationwide study—and the proposals for reform—in “Forced Out.”
Accepting What Can’t Be Changed. We think you’ll appreciate the profound insights of Joni Eareckson Tada in “Thriving with Limitations” and the simple gratitude of “It Really Is a Wonderful Life.”
—The Editors
1996 Christianity Today/LEADERSHIP Journal
