But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is perfected in weakness." Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may reside in me. (2 Corinthians 12:9)
WATERFORD, MI – Being born and raised in the south, I don’t know much about this snow stuff. However, I do know that when it snows, I am expected to shovel that snow. Several weeks ago, we got a few inches and I was heading out to shovel. Before I could get out the door, I heard our 4-year old daughter Layla calling, “Daddy, can I go too? I want to help!” I gave her a thumbs up and her mom started getting her dressed. When Layla joined me outside a few minutes later, she exclaimed, “Okay Daddy, I have my shovel and I’m ready to help!” I turned and noticed that my shovel was a little bit different from hers. There she stood with an 8oz princess cup, intending to join forces with her daddy and to change the world.
The longer I participate in the work of church planting, the more I realize that God doesn’t need my help. He has every tool and resource in the universe at His disposal. When it comes to pushing back the darkness, advancing the Gospel, and building His Kingdom, God has a God-sized shovel…and I have a princess cup. Like a 4-year old helping dad, I lack the strength, experience, and attention-span to complete the job by myself. But, here’s the good news: God, my Heavenly Dad, graciously invites me to join Him in His work anyway. He doesn’t extend this invitation because He needs me. God invites me to join Him, to participate in His Great Commission, because He wants to be with me, displaying His power and patience to me in the process.
I need to be reminded of this gracious invitation often. I love this journey we’re on. I can’t imagine being anywhere else doing anything else. With that said, the Church Planting process is not always polite. Excuse the expression, but when I get “too big for my britches” Church Planting has no problem showing me how small I am. Church Planting has a unique way of exposing inadequacy and revealing immaturity. In those times, I need to be reminded that God doesn’t need my help. My abilities are not enough to propel God’s mission, and my inabilities are not enough to halt God’s mission. This is okay because God’s shovel is plenty big. God’s invitation, His calling on my life, is more about the powerful display of His grace than my ability to run the race. My weaknesses are glaring, but His grace is sufficient!
This powerful grace is what motivates our involvement in His mission. God, who does not need us, rescues us, invites us, and empowers us to participate in His rescue of others. While we have our inadequacies and immaturities, God calls for us to join Him as He transforms lives, transferring people from death to life and from darkness to light. We may only have a princess cup, but Daddy’s shovel is big enough. What a gracious invitation!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Seth Springs serves in Waterford, MI with his wife Taylor and their 2 little girls Layla and Lily. Seth is a church planter and one of the pastors of Transformation Church Waterford.