Commentary by Mike Colaw
I don’t know whether you have ever been to New York City. If you have, you know there are really only three ways to get around: walking, subway or taxi. I heard a story the other day about a gentleman who hailed a ride out of the long line of yellow taxis that you only see in the large cities. As he hopped in the car and put his seatbelt on the car was rear-ended by another taxi. To his amazement, the driver didn’t seem to care at all. The driver behind them didn’t engage either. He put the car in drive and they left, like nothing happened. The expectations of these drivers are so different than in Fishers.
We call that a hit-and-run and it can cause serious trouble. Not in New York. That’s called “normal traffic.” In our suburban utopia you can get in a car wreck that’s no more intense than a kiddie roller coaster ride and inevitably law suits and endless doctor visits are sure to follow. In New York, a little whiplash goes with your morning coffee on the way to work.
Expectations matter. This is true in marriage, our jobs, with our children, even in our churches. We want a worship pastor who sings like the angels, a sound technician who perfectly queues the microphones and a pastor who draws you to tears with every illustration even if it’s a story out of Leviticus.
This is true on the leadership side, too. We want church attenders who never complain, volunteers in every ministry and congregants who love it when someone new takes their seat. Somewhere in the middle of what “ought” to be and what truly is, we find miserable, grumpy Christians.
This is also true in how we approach God. Thanks to the landslide of health, wealth and prosperity preaching over the last decade, we have an army of Christians who think their physical and financial condition directly results from their having enough faith or being “right with God.” Yes, because all the disciples lived long healthy lives with lots of money and land. (Where is that sarcasm punctuation mark again?) I think something needs to change.
2 Peter 1:5-7, “For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.” Peter calls Christians to “make every effort” to increase in these attributes. I don’t know about you, but growing my self-control, steadfastness and godliness along with all these other attributes takes work and a little, if not a lot, of jostling in life. Life isn’t about your comfort; it’s about being conformed to the heart of Christ. Expectations matter.