AndyBship

Before I began the process of planting New City Church Albany my ministry context was youth pastor then pastor in the established church. This meant there were always meetings to attend on the local and associational front. My phone always went off because of calls, texts, or emails. People needed to pray, offer encouragement or complain about something. I remember days when I just wanted to cut my phone off to get some peace and quiet. In all honesty there were times I wanted to throw it across the room or out the window. Now that my context has changed my phone situation is drastically different. Most days it never rings at all. There are moments when I look at my phone and I almost pray it would ring. Now I know this seems weird to some of you as your read it. When I went to an Acts 29 Boot Camp and I heard a church planter share a similar story and I said the same things you may be thinking. “Is a ringing phone really that big a deal?” “I don’t understand how a phone can help or hurt loneliness.”  Well I didn’t have a clue until we parachuted into Albany for this work. We came from a church where pockets of people were committed to serving, praying, giving, and gathering. There was never a lack of conversation about our church and its direction so naturally there was never a lack of phone calls and text. 

What I’ve learned these past few months is a church plant is nothing like an established church; something I forget from time-to-time as my assumptions rise to the surface and they guide my expectations. A church plant more times than none begins with a planter and his family (a blog for later) and thats it! There are no pockets of fellow believers who are passionate and committed therefore this no discussion like there once was. This creates moments of tension; moments where depression and fear attempt to rise to the surface and wrap their chords around your neck and my confession is sometimes they do exactly that! 

The glorious truth that gets revealed in these situations is the grace of God. Never before had I really been in a situation where the grace of God has had to be all sufficient for me. Never had I really gotten a glimpse, just a glimpse, of how Paul may have felt in prison or how John felt on Patmos or how the disciples may have felt in the boat when the storm came. Yet in all three the presence of Jesus was all that was needed. 

So pray! You the reader of these ramblings lift up an inexperienced and totally inadequate church planter. Pray for a stronger inclination to lean on Jesus and be free from the need of people. Pray all for sufficient grace while I feel like I’m on this church planting island all alone. 

It has been almost a year since the last time I blogged. However, in light of where I find myself the need to get some thoughts off my chest and out of my mind has become a necessity. My lot in life has changed dramatically. I was called way from my place of service in the established church to Albany Georgia for the purpose of planting a new church. We have been at this for almost 5 months now and there are lots of thoughts and prayer request that I wish to make known. My desire is that you who read these post will learn much about the ups and downs of planting but also that you will know the best ways to be praying for me and this work which God has called me to. Im looking forward to getting this all out there and seeing how God will use it for His glory. 

Thanks for reading and for praying. 

Andy