It would be helpful for a new pastor to speak to the very anxiety that exists with his or her arrival, both for the pastor and family and for the congregation. To name the daimon of anxiety can be helpful in it not becoming a demon that can interrupt the formation of the new relationship. You are inviting the whole congregation to become a non-anxious presence who is willing to be patient with the unfolding of God’s purpose.
One way to do that is to name, perhaps with some exaggeration, some possible expectations that the different parties can be having. Simply to say something like, “I know that some of you may be hoping that I can replicate the strengths of my predecessor or even exemplify the amazing gifts of another pastor that you have always admired,” can get people thinking about what they are expecting. To own the fact that you are hoping that everyone will have a strong faith, demonstrate excellent stewardship, and be a perfectly harmonious congregation, can help them smile at their own reality without feeling condemned. You could even build an exaggerated characterization of a perfect congregation and a perfect pastor, and then recognize that your side of that equation is probably lacking some gifts and inviting them to help build you up even as you help build them up.
But the next step is crucial. That is, after you have named the danger of false expectations, and human frailties, you are prepared to point beyond yourself and beyond them and raise the question as to what God’s call is for both of you. In the Reformed faith and its recognition of the “total depravity” of all humans, we are prepared to recognize that even when we seek to be led by God’s spirit, our understanding of God’s call for pastor and congregation is never perfect. For both the pastor and the congregation, it is a Reformed understanding that we are both more and less than we assume. We begin as confessed sinners who seek to trust in a God who sees more in us than we see in ourselves.
