Spiritual Leadership (part4)

One of the greatest challenges for spiritual leaders, particularly in local churches, is raising the expectations of those they lead.

The old adage, “You get what you expect” is certainly true when it comes to leadership and is even more true regarding spiritual leadership. Spiritual leaders set Godly expectations and lead by example. Raising expectations requires wisdom, determination, and patience.

Here are some considerations for spiritual leaders who hope to raise the expectations of those they lead.

1. Without spiritual leadership, expectations will fall.
When God’s people left Egypt heading for the land promised to them by God they followed Moses, their God-appointed leader. Their expectations were high! They had their sights set on freedom! But when Moses went up to the top of Mt. Sinai to receive God’s commandments leaving them alone, their expectations fell. When he returned they had turned their backs on him and on God. Without spiritual leadership, expectations will fall.

2. Expectations must be guided by God’s Word, not personal preferences.
Spiritual leaders must be able to clearly distinguish God’s direction, God’s agenda, and God’s will from their own. We all have personal preferences, but spiritual leaders must be able and willing to set clear expectations that are clearly guided by God’s Word.

3. New expectations are first modeled and then taught.
Spiritual leadership is not saying, “Do as I say, not as I do.” That is a model for failure. Spiritual leaders must model what the expectations are for those they lead and set an example. Only when the new expectations are seen and recognized can they be taught and expected of others.

4. Raising expectations always requires confrontation.
“People are creatures of habit.” This is especially true for churches and for this reason when spiritual leaders want to raise expectations they can expect confrontation. Often times, raising expectations means changing the power structure in a church, family, or organization. People who want to hold on to their power will resist raising their expectations. Spiritual leaders must confront power structures in order to raise expectations.

5. Setting higher expectations leads to growth!
When Jesus preached the ‘Sermon on the Mount’ he raised our expectations of what it means to be his followers and disciples. Some say that his message was just an ideal that we could never attain. I believe he simply took that opportunity to clearly lay out his expectations for anyone who wants to be his disciple! Jesus raised the bar morally and spiritually because he wants us to grow morally and spiritually! When spiritual leaders set higher expectations of those they lead we can expect to grow!