FROM THE EDITOR
Marshall Shelley
July 1, 1990
Not long ago, I visited an inner-city church in Washington, D.C. The facility was old, showing years of use, but it was clean and bustling with people on that Tuesday morning. As the pastor described their various ministries-legal aid, health clinic, tenants association, tutoring program, as well as worship and traditional Christian education-I realized none of this would have happened without the godly ambition of key people. What causes someone to recognize a need or an injustice and respond with compassion, courage, and wisdom? Often it's holy ambition, a divinely implanted drive. This urge to achieve something significant for God is displayed at most of the pastors' gatherings I've attended. Even when the stated agenda is rest and renewal, as we hear about one another's successes, ambition is piqued. Other conversations center on "what I'd hoped to do but was unable to accomplish," and we all walk away feeling, There's more I should be doing. I appreciate the encouragement to greater effort I've received from such events. For instance, one pastor testified: "A veteran pastor once warned me not to expect too much of people, because most of them live by God's minimum requirements. I know what he meant: we give stars for people simply showing up! "In preaching, he said, 'Aim low; they're riding Shetlands.' But that approach frustrates me. The leader's job is to challenge people to greater things, to raise the expectations." Another said: "For years this church struggled with indecisive leadership. When I arrived, they made it clear they wanted a 'faster pastor,' who was willing to initiate ministries and make decisions. I've tried to do what needed to be done." Yet another said: "The church has often been compared to a ship, but ...
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