It's Almost As If God Knows What He's Doing

Our story of planting in Loughrea starts with prayer. I know that seems a very ‘spiritual’ thing to say, and I’m sure all of us have similar experiences. While researching planting locations we were told of a couple of ladies who had decided to meet every Thursday for an hour to pray for God to bring a family to plant a church in Loughrea. To cut a long story short, we visited different churches trying to find these ladies, and we did eventually join them in prayer, eventually joining them in planting a church. I often say that we are the worst answer to prayer that they have ever received!

What stood out to me during this time was the honesty of one of the ladies as she prayed, but also how she took God’s faithfulness and grace in her stride. We would pray for things to happen that would make it easier for us to move. We would ask God to introduce us to people in schools in order to make our families transition easier. We would receive answers to prayers we hadn’t even thought about praying! Of course some of these weren’t in the time frame that we wanted, or without any struggle or stress, but God kept making the path clear.

One Thursday I shared these thoughts over a cup of tea with the older lady we met with, and she said something to me which I will never forget; “Jonny, it’s almost as if God knows what He’s doing.”

Those words are a challenge to me even now, because as I reflect on them I realise that sometimes I pray and don’t really believe that God is able. Sometimes my prayers are like suggestions, or helpful advice for the Creator of the Universe just in case He had never considered the things I had arrived at with my limited wisdom and knowledge. One of the major struggles in ministry, particularly in rural ministry, is that everything seems to take longer. In many cases we need to focus on seasons, not weeks. Years, not months. Generations, not what’s coming up next in a schedule. Of course this is a tremendously difficult thing to live out because we want to feel like we are having an impact, that we are making a difference, that what we are doing matters. It can be frustrating to take one step forward only to feel like you are taking two steps back. So how can we view ministry like this in the way that God sees it? Well, going back to the lady in our church, we need to remember that it’s almost as if God knows what He is doing!

Don’t Blame Hard Ground

Many times when faced with circumstances like this we blame the soil that we are tilling. It’s too hard, the culture is too difficult, the people are… The reality is that if God knows what He is doing, then He has placed you and your church where you are, with the ordinary means of grace that we have, the disciplines that He has blessed us with, and is working to bring fruitfulness. Our issue is that in these seasons we look to others, notice their ‘success’ and wonder why it isn’t like that for us. There is no ground too hard for the Gospel, and no magic bullet to break it up. What we need is time, humble service, and to keep going.

Keep Faithfully Preparing

When asked do we have elders in our church I say yes, just that some of them are still in primary school and haven’t realised they are elders yet! In ten years, that 14 year old will be 24, and with discipleship and God’s grace, will be a passionate follower of Jesus - if we take time in faithfully exercising our ministry. It is so tempting to want results in the here and now, but if we are planning for generations, those incremental steps will have long lasting impact, and multiply in future. Yes there will be little moments of growth, exciting shoots, major moments, but rural ministry like the farming metaphors that Jesus regular used, value time, patience, faithfulness. So keep going, but remember, it’s hard to go alone…

Find A Shoulder To Lean On

I like rugby, but there are many in Ireland who love it, and get excited about games. I have to admit though that the Irish anthem is stirring and gets me excited. I have to admit, it could be a hymn for church with a few tweaks, but it sums up what’s needed for a generational impact…

Side by side

We stand like brothers

One for all and all together

We will stay united through darker days

And we'll be unbeatable forever

Ireland, Ireland

Together standing tall

Shoulder to shoulder

We'll answer Ireland's call!

We walk forward, shoulder to shoulder, to answer the call of our Lord. To follow Him, for His glory, His church, and His Kingdom. When times are difficult, when growth is hard to fathom never mind see, we need others around us to put their shoulder to ours, and remind us, that God does know what He’s doing, and we walk forward together in light of that. When I think that nothing is happening, that I’m unsure of what to do and when to do it, the call is to remain faithful, and realise that our God knows what He’s doing.