As a congregation, we have expectations of a visiting preacher when we have invited him to come and hold a Gospel Meeting. We expect him to preach the truth, to give us his best sermons, to be friendly and get to know us, to encourage us as we strive to serve the Lord, etc. Have we ever stopped to think about what a visiting preacher expects from us when he holds our Gospel Meeting? I hold a number of meetings each year. The following are a few things I expect from congregations that have invited me to hold a meeting.

1. I expect the members of the congregation to support the meeting with their faithful attendance. Empty pews are a discouragement to everyone who is present, including the visiting preacher. If it isn't important enough for the members to have cleared their schedule to support the meeting one hour each evening, why should they have expected me to take an entire week out of my schedule to leave my home and be with them?

2. I expect the members to have advertised the meeting and invited the lost to come and hear the gospel. I don't just throw a handful of sermons into my briefcase and head off to hold a Gospel Meeting. I put thought, effort, and prayer into selecting the sermons I will preach during a meeting. I try my best to accommodate any requests for subjects that the congregation has submitted to me. Otherwise, I try to choose a good balance of topics to address throughout the week.

Likewise, I am counting on the members of the local congregation to be putting forth an equal amount of effort in getting the word out to the community and surrounding congregations. I don't show up a week early to get the word out in their community. I don't know their friends, co-workers, classmates, neighbors, and relatives. They do. I am not opposed to visiting and inviting people during the week while I am with them, but I expect the bulk of this work to have been done before I arrive.

3. I expect the members to support the preaching of the truth. I do not expect the members to shower me with compliments, nor to take my word for the truth, but if the sermons are in harmony with the Word of God, I expect them to be supported by the members. It is counter-productive, not to mention embarrassing and discouraging, to hear members "apologize" to visitors for the sermons that are preached. I take my charge to preach the word (2 Tim. 4:2) with love and tact (Eph. 4:15; Col. 4:6) very seriously. In doing so, I speak as plainly and straightforwardly as I can. God can only work through His word if it has been understood. Thus, I expect the members to demand and support an honest and loving presentation of the truth.