The Challenge of Expectations for the Preacher

We are in a series of posts considering some of the challenges that preachers face today. In the last post we considered the challenge of preaching absolute truth in a society that doesn’t believe in it. In this post we are going to look at the challenge of expectations for the preacher in our world.

Expectations

What are the expectations for the preacher? In his book, Deep Preaching, J Kent Edwards gives this list of expectations for people who dare to take up the task of preaching. This is on page 9 of the book under the question: what does a church want today? Consider this in your situation:

A high-powered visionary leader that sees the future and knows how to get there.
A personal humility that makes you sensitive and responsive to the concerns of everyone in church.
A highly visible commitment to reproduce yourself in the next generation of leaders.
You to play a prominent role in the community at large and lead by example in the area of one-on-one evangelism.
A wonderful team player that befriends, motivates and supervises the church staff.
A paragon of hospitality who opens their home for youth group events whenever asked.
An effective fund-raiser.
A denominational leader of considerable influence to the wider church.
A caring pastor who always tends to the needs of the local church (that pays their salary).
The kind of counselor that James Dobson wishes he could be.
A commitment to marriage that spurs you to spend six weeks of pre-marital counseling before performing the weddings of everyone who asks.
A commitment to marriage that causes you to spend significant quantity and quality time with your wife and family.
You to s pend quality time in prayer seeking the face of God.
Instantly answered email and texts.
You to write the occasional best-selling book–on your vacation.

Wow! The challenge of expectations for the preacher is huge and varied. You can maybe add to the list something like being your friend. Some cultures add multiple worship services during the week.

A Personal Experience of Expectations

When I entered ministry I took these kinds of expectations for granted. When I think back to my schedule back then I realize that I was slightly crazy. Here’s my schedule for those first years– Talk about the challenge of expectations for the preacher!

Write two messages each week for the morning and evening services, and prepare them well.
Plan the worship services.
Prepare the bulletin for printing.
Prepare for and teach the high school Sunday School class before the morning worship service.
Prepare and lead the youth group after the evening service.
Counsel people on demand–sometimes when they show up at your door unannounced.
Direct the choir, which practices on Sunday afternoon.
Pastorally care for all the families in the church.
Evangelize in the community and disciple those who accept Jesus.
Cut the church and parsonage lawn.

That last one is true. When I asked to be relieved of that responsibility, one elder responded, “But pastor ______ (my predecessor) did it?

After 4 years of this schedule I was in a depression, and rejoiced when I received a call to become part of staff at a church across the country.

Side note: The church struggled after I left. There were preachers who couldn’t or didn’t live up to expectations, and as a result, the church died.

Managing the Expectations for the Preacher

So, how do you manage these kinds of crushing expectations? It’s not easy, but it can be done. You need to set your boundaries, with the support of your elders or governing board. What is legitimate? Among all the possibilities, whaat is humanly possible? What do you do when someone seeks to stretch your boundaries? These kinds of questions need to be discussed and agreed upon. And then you are going to have to enforce them.

Conclusion

In the next post I’ll reflect on how to set your personal boundaries in relation to the expectations of the church.

May 26, 2026/by Bruce Ballast