By pressing in and pressing on.
Press in to Jesus.
I cannot tell you how many times I have wanted to quit over the last six years and I wish I could tell you every time I wanted to quit, I ran to Jesus, repented of my sin and lack of faith and immediately went back to work, but I can’t. But that is exactly what I should have done and when I did do it, my perspective always changed. The circumstances didn’t necessarily improve, but my perspective on them did. In addition, by putting the “first thing first,” I was able to root my identity in the Gospel afresh (and not my identity as a planter) and get the spiritual resources I needed to do the next hard thing.
Press on in the work.
Time after time in the Scriptures, we see the call to endure in our faith and ministry. Part of the reason why these texts exist (and why there are so many of them) is because we need to hear this message often. The distractions and discouragements in planting a church are legion, but these Words are an anchor in the midst of the storm. As we hear them and repent of our sin, we will be not only buoyed but encouraged to persevere in the work as well.
There are always two churches when we plant.
The church we think we are going to plant and the church that actually gets planted.
Successful planters are the men who “press in and press on” to successfully navigate the distance between the two.
