Planning your life's work to have lasting influence. Summer 2002 Soul & Spirit The Pastor

ARTICLE TOOLS

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Father, I'm confused again. I get so excited sharing the vision of this church. How could I ever seriously think about leaving?

"Where's the compelling reason?" my accountability partner asked. He was struggling to understand why I would consider leaving for a different pastorate.

Frankly, so was I.

After 11 years of rewarding ministry at Browncroft Community Church in Rochester, New York, the church was strong. We had a great vision for the future. My wife, Becky, was recovering from cancer surgery. Our children were in excellent schools, and they were in a good place spiritually. We had just built a new home.

It didn't make sense to uproot and start all over again on the opposite side of the country. But why did we feel this nagging restlessness and the mysterious intuition that God was up to something?

We prayed for several days after receiving a letter from the church in San Diego. Becky and I concluded God was prompting us to respond with a cautious openness. God wasn't asking us to move across the country and start all over again. He was only asking us to send a resume.

In my journal I began to list the questions I grappled with. I wasn't interested in another ministry, but I needed to know what God was doing inside of me.

God, we don't want to start down this road if you're not in it. If this is just another opportunity for ministry, we don't want it. If for any reason this is not about obedience, we'd rather pass. If you are in this, you're going to have to make it very clear. Like Peter on the Sea of Galilee: "Lord, if it's you, command me to come" (Matt. 14:28).

If the most important thing in life is to bring glory to God, does it really matter where I serve Him? Is God most glorified when I am most ...

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