Balls to the Wall

Now that this dictionary clearly tells me that the phrase "Balls to the Wall" does not mean what you think it means, I feel pretty confident that I can tell you that that’s where I am right now without getting myself in any trouble! Here is what it means:

"A term used by pilots. when accelerating quickly, the throttle is pushed
all the way to the panel and the throttle lever (ball) actually touches
the panel (wall). Hence, balls to the wall.
"

If you are going to succeed as a church planter (or anything for that matter(, you have to go balls to the wall when launching. You have to give it your all! You have to lay it all on the line. Not only is this required from a practical standpoint, because church planting requires so much hard work, but in our busy, over-extended society, people need to see that you are passionate about what you say you are called to do or they won’t believe you.

Church planting is no easy business. It doesn’t matter where you are, what church you come from, what organizations are supporting you, how much experience you have…church planting is never easy – period. Anytime you are willing to step out into nothing because you believe in your spirit that God (and people) are going to move, it takes courage, hard work, determination, and much more.

No restaurant in the world is more established, has a built in
audience, a history, a brand, and a proven system to work with than
McDonald’s. They know the game and they’re good at it. They have started tens of thousands of restaurants all across the world. But I dare you
to tell one McDonald’s franchisee that starting a McDonald’s is easy.
As a matter of fact, they will tell you that the standards for success are so high there, that most people just couldn’t do it. The work, the pace, the pressure, the money, the people -starting a McDonald’s is not for the feint of heart!

Right now, I am no longer in a comfortable place with church planting…my income from my previous job is gone, my income from our sponsoring organizations has not started. We have set an excellent foundation for The Courageous Church, but a foundation is a useless waste of space if something meaningful is not built on top of it for people to use. We are developing some buzz, but buzz is not enough.

Now is the time to go BALLS TO THE WALL…and (McDonald’s pun intended) I’m loving it!