Take Courage: You are not the First Domino 7

We often fail to consider the work of our Father before we arrive on the scene.

We wrongly think we are the first domino to fall in God’s plan when it comes to our church planting endeavors. We may be near the beginning, but we are not the starting point–even among the unengaged and unreached.  He is the starting point.

We move into town and forget about His general revelation (Ps 19:1-4; Rom 1:19-20).

We begin our work on October 4, but He has been at work before the foundation of the world (Eph 1:4).

We grab a table in the coffee shop–prayerfully considering how we can reach those around us–and have no idea that an angel of God is appearing to Cornelius down the street (Acts 10:3).

We develop important strategies to reach the nations, but often fail to remember that He has determined where and when the nations will live so that they would feel their way toward Him (Acts 17:26-27).

He is at work before we arrive. Do we realize and rest in this important truth?

And while He is always at work, He has chosen to work through His Church to proclaim the gospel so that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved (Rom 10:13).  Yes, He has a means as well.

He is a missionary God.  He is more concerned about the salvation of the nations than we are.  He is more invested in the birth of churches than we are. He has a missionary strategy. His strategy involves us. We are co-laborers with Him (2 Cor 6:1). And that is good news!

Take courage in your labors today. You are not alone.

And even while we sleep and face the multiple, mundane, daily tasks of life, His dominoes are already falling in place.

(Image Source: Microsoft, Royalty-Free/Corbis)