Not only do I believe that men and women called to plant a church are also called to live their lives to a higher standard, I also believe that we are raised in the sights of the enemy (Satan) that wants to come and destroy our good work. Anytime we are moving forward to do our part to share God’s love and see others come to know the presence of the Lord, Satan rises up to challenge that work.
It’s an interesting issue and one that I admit I don’t have a lifetime of understanding about. Coming from the perspective of being an atheist for my first 37 years of life, I had no conscious presence of God or Satan, heaven or hell.
From my first session at my seminary I was introduced to the concept of spiritual warfare. Seemed like an odd thing to hear prominent pastors in Christian Church leadership circles discussing their battles with the enemy and how important it was to have some serious intercessory prayer warriors on their team. However, the more I pursued my education and ministry the more I came to understand the seriousness of Satan’s efforts to thwart what God had set into motion. I had my first major battle during a trip to my seminary where everything that could prevent me from getting there was thrown at me. In the end, God’s strength got me through it all, even when I wanted to just abandon my broken-down car and catch a bus home. I was beaten, but came out stronger in the end having seen first-hand what can happen when Satan tries to take people out. That 14 hour drive to my seminary was a very real battle and the moment Satan became very real to me.
I feel as if I was called into the war zone once again this week. It has been a difficult time of struggle, and a lot of it was caused by my actually losing sight of the enemy and allowing him to sneak up on me. I was not in my Ephesians 6 mode. I was not hearing the voice of God telling me to prepare myself. I was in my own world. Trying to forge ahead and keep the momentum of our church plant going. Trying to bring some sanity back to my house where chaos has reigned supreme in some matters with my wife & step-daughter. I was so focused on trying to resolve some things that I was blindsided by enemy attack. Honestly, it got the best of me. I was beaten up, dragged down a path of darkness, and feeling helpless. I was physically and emotionally drained.
As embarrassing as this may be to admit, I was ready to give in and let Satan ruin the work we had started by letting his stronghold get the best of us here. I had no more energy left. It’s something that has been addressed and festering for over 8 years. Enough was enough. In my desperation, I called upon some friends to pray for me via twitter--probably not the wisest thing to do as it revealed a weakness within me and my family--but my friends responded in favor and love and faithfulness and I feel God woke me up to what was going on. I had lost track of the work of the enemy because I was so overwhelmed at God’s favor and blessings upon our church plant. Complacency prevailed.
I’m starting to get back on track today, but am scarred and weary from the fight this week. Through my prayer request, I was reminded by another brother-in-Christ that is planting a church that the warfare is continually going on and that the more we discredit it as coincidence or nothing to be concerned about, the more of a stronghold Satan gets in our family. If you’re a church planter, please…please…please realize that the power of Satan is great because he attacks our weak points. He will invade through our families and cause strife and uncertainty to pick away at us and cause us to question our call. He will use divisiveness and lies to get us to quit. He will bring sickness into our midst to weaken us. Satan has no power our authority over us as we walk with Christ, but he can sure work to get us sidetracked and overwhelmed with his lies.
Do you have a team of spiritual intercessors that will stand at the gates and sing battle hymns of victory over you and your family? Can you get to the point of humility where you will even call upon your prayer team to intercede? This is not a game nor random acts of chance. There is a very strong force of darkness out there and you are his target. He will stop at nothing, but if you prepare yourself and continue to look to the heavens, God proves to us that he will prevail. We can put our hope and trust in the Lord to see us through. However, it’s a messy and ugly journey at times and we can’t believe the lies. We must have our eyes open to the darkness that tries to suck us in. Satan is real and the more you try to cause him to lose his grip on the world, the stronger he will fight back. May you never be blindsided by the efforts of Satan to take you out of your ministry. May the authority of Christ rule over victory and your battles strengthen you and better-prepare for running the race and finishing strong.
Related posts:
- Death by church planting
- Church Planting and Philippians 3
- Church Planting & Philippians 4
- Jasonisms for church planting
- Church Planting & Philippians 1
Tags: church planting, ephesisans 6, satan, spiritual warfare
Dave,
An excellent post. I just wanted to publically thank you for praying for my family yesterday. I need more of that in my life. (Praying for others, that is.)
When we left Seattle to plant a church and serve the lost and suffering, here in Imperial Beach and the outlying areas (including Tijuana), we didn’t realize we would battle against everything under the sun. It has been more than six months, now, and we still haven’t planted.
Granted, I am helping a friend rebuild his church in Poway, after the original pastor died earlier last year, causing a massive split. But, I know that the enemy has plans to derail us from what God called us here to do. Again, thanks for your post and for your prayers.
T. Michael Cart
Michael, I am here for you in prayer or whatever else I can do, whenever you feel the urge to connect. It was my privileged honor to be able to pray for you, your family, and your ministry. You are on my prayer list and I will continue to keep you in prayer. I actually started on my journey to plant a church over 3 years ago. It seems something always came up or doubt was present. However, in the end, I feel as if it was all in God’s timing and that we have an unstoppable momentum building here in Sacramento. Be patient, wait on the Lord’s timing and he will pull you through anything and get you where he needs you to be. I know it’s tough, but hang in there friend.