Mission isn’t easy – but isn’t that the point of it to start with?
Jonny Pollock
In Western Europe, the refrain is common: mission and evangelism are hard.
It’s an oft-heard lament, one that sparks endless discussion, strategy sessions, and even discouragement among Christians. But what do we really mean when we say it’s “hard”? Beneath the surface, it often seems we’re using “hard” as a catch-all term for something deeper – uncomfortable, difficult, and complicated. These realities, while challenging, are not legitimate reasons to abandon the Great Commission, or to throw in the towel in despair. Instead, they demand that we reframe our approach, recalibrate our expectations, and reaffirm our commitment to the task at hand.
Are you limiting your ministry trainee?
One of the uncomfortable tests of leadership development is less about whether people grow under us, but whether we are willing for them to grow beyond us.
Most church leaders would say that we want to raise up leaders as a core conviction, yet sometimes we can unconsciously shape people only to the size of our own ability. We develop leaders who can help us, but perhaps not challenge us. We want Shetland ponies—loyal, manageable, small—whereas God may be giving us racehorses. And racehorses are sometimes hard to handle.