Hastings: Of expectations and gifts
“We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to each of us.” — Romans 12:6 The Inclusive Bible
When my husband and I returned to our hometown after 12 years of military service and education, there were many rules and expectations we hadn’t anticipated. When he was fire chief, there were unwritten surprise expectations of the chief’s wife. As Christmas approached, I was told, “The fire chief’s wife always plans the entertainment for the Christmas party.” Although this was not my area of expertise, I managed with expert guidance from a former chief’s wife.
One day the fire department was called to a house fire. In spite of their best efforts the older frame house was a total loss. A family had lost their home. I was told, “The fire chief’s wife organizes the benefit dinner for the family.” Well, food service and event planning were not and are not my area of expertise, so after some angst I asked for help from local churches and organizations. The responses were, “We’re too busy to do the whole dinner, but we could do the rolls…” “We’re too busy … but we could do the salads…” “We’re too busy … but we could do the desserts.”
Meanwhile a newcomer to the community offered to make spaghetti from her family’s special recipe. So I arranged for a place, set a date and called each group to accept their offers. When others in the community learned who was in charge, they came to the rescue. Everything needed was provided, right down to the salt, pepper and butter. And I had the privilege of presenting a check to a grateful family.
Afterward I wondered how many more surprise expectations might be thrust upon me. And wouldn’t it be better to match the community’s needs to those with the gifts and abilities to meet them rather than to assign tasks by some unbending traditional role requirement?
The early church freshly anointed by the Spirit seems to have organized itself around gifts and graces rather than roles and expectations. At least one doesn’t read of early Christians being organized by roles, traditions or Robert’s Rules. Their community, organized by spiritual gifts, ensured that no one was in need and no one was left out. There seems to have been no angst over misplaced expectations, and one does not read about any stone-soup style benefit dinners.
The great advantage of organizing community around spiritual gifts rather than traditional role expectations seems to be that everyone enjoyed abundance and peace.
The Rev. Celia M. Hastings has a master's degree in religious education from Western Theological Seminary in Holland. She is author of “The Wisdom Series” and “The Undertaker’s Wife.”
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Hastings: Of expectations and gifts
