Church planting isn’t totally like going to space, but it does have some similarities. As a kid I dreamt about becoming an astronaut. I imagined myself going through the months of training and then the day of the launch. Even though I was full of excitement I also had a little bit of fear. How fast would the rocket be going? Would I survive the launch? Would I wet my pants? So many important questions for a kid. And here I am now, definitely not a kid and definitely not an astronaut, but very excited about a different launch that God has been preparing my family for.
In about one month we (the Isaziga’s) will leave the garden state of New Jersey and fly across the country to Southern California. I never imagined that I would live in California, but neither did I ever imagine that I would live in New Jersey.
I guess that’s the beauty of following God’s leading. But I would be lying if I didn’t tell you that it’s also a journey filled with some fear. That has caused me to think of Abraham lately. Check out what God says to him in Genesis 12…
“The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
So Abram went, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran. He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.”
That sounds really easy. God said go, Abraham went, and they arrived. I don’t know what might have occurred between the lines. Maybe Abraham was scared, maybe he wasn’t. One thing I do know is that just because you have fear doesn’t mean you don’t have faith. The powerful force of faith will cause you to act in the face of fear.
There is a pleasant symbiotic relationship between faith and fear. They seem to both feed each other. So, yeah I have a little fear. But God has been trustworthy throughout my life. He hasn’t let me down. I have counted on Him and He hasn’t disappointed. He has the best intentions for my life and He loves me extravagantly.
The same goes for you. Don’t fear. What is your next step of faith? God wants you to “arrive there”. “There” may not be space, Canaan, or San Diego. But it never really has been about the “there”, it’s about the “they”. Your’e not alone. Suit up and go.
What rocket ship is God asking you to climb aboard?
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Carlos Isaziga is the lead planter for Luminous City Church, a new church for San Diego, California. You can help them reach their goal of 50 prayer partners by signing-up to join their prayer team. You can also help the Isaziga family to reach their funding goals by choosing to make a donation. 