When It Feels Like Everything Is Going The Wrong Direction

Let's face it... there are seasons in ministry that simply don't make sense.

And maybe they look something like this:

You've been praying faithfully. Studying harder than ever. Preparing messages you believe God has given you. Loving people. Investing in leaders. Doing everything you know to do.

And somehow...

Things seem to be moving in the wrong direction.

Attendance slips. A key family leaves. Giving slows. Conflict surfaces. Opportunities you were counting on disappear. You begin to wonder if you've missed God somewhere along the way.

Most pastors won't say it out loud, but almost all of us have asked the question:

"Lord, if I'm doing what You've asked me to do... why does it feel like everything is getting worse?"

I've been there, and you probably have too.

I found myself thinking about John 11. It's the familiar story of Lazarus becoming sick and eventually dying. Most of us know how the story ends, but it's the middle of the story that has captured my attention.

John writes, "Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when He heard that Lazarus was sick, He stayed where He was two more days." (John 11:5–6)

Read that again.

Because it almost feels backwards. We expect John to write, "Jesus loved them, so He left immediately." Instead he says, "Jesus loved them... so He stayed."

Love delayed.

Compassion that didn't look compassionate.

A decision that made no sense to the people who were hurting.

I wonder how many pastors are living in the tension of those two verses right now. You're doing what you know to do. You're trusting God. And from your perspective, it feels as though heaven is waiting while everything around you is unraveling.

Martha couldn't understand it.

Mary couldn't understand it.

The disciples couldn't understand it.

From every human perspective...

Jesus was late.

But heaven never considered Him late.

Here's what encourages me: Jesus wasn't reacting to the situation. He was already working from a plan no one else could see. While everyone else was focused on the sickness, Jesus was preparing for something greater.

They wanted Jesus to restore what they had.

Jesus intended to reveal something they had never seen.

There's an important difference. Healing would have restored what had been. Resurrection would reveal the glory of God in a way they had never imagined.

Sometimes I wonder if that's where we find ourselves in ministry.

We're praying for God to restore what once was. He's preparing to do something we can't yet see. 

I've lived that tension myself.

There have been seasons in my own ministry where I prayed harder than ever, prepared better than ever, and still watched things move in directions I never would have chosen.

There were moments when all I had were questions, and very few answers.

Looking back now, I realize I was asking God to preserve one chapter while He was already preparing the next.

At the time it felt like loss.

Today I can see it was also preparation.

That's one of the gifts that only time can give us. We often don't understand what God is doing while we're living through it. We understand it only after we've walked far enough down the road to look back and see His hand.

Now, let's be careful here. Not every struggling ministry is about to experience dramatic growth. Sometimes God closes one chapter before He opens another. Sometimes He redirects us. Sometimes He refines us. Sometimes He leads us into an entirely new season.

But one thing never changes.

Our calling is faithfulness.

So what do you do when it feels like your ministry is moving in the wrong direction?

You keep doing the right things.

Keep praying.

Keep studying.

Keep loving people.

Keep leading with integrity.

Keep trusting God.

Keep showing up.

Don't allow temporary confusion to rewrite a lifelong calling.

One of the greatest temptations in difficult seasons is to abandon the very disciplines that have sustained us for years. Discouragement whispers that prayer isn't accomplishing anything. Preparation doesn't matter. Loving people isn't making a difference.

Don't believe that voice.

Continue planting seeds that only God can make grow.

Continue walking closely with Jesus.

Continue being faithful in the ordinary moments that no one applauds.

The harvest has always belonged to Him.

If today feels like you're living somewhere between John 11:5 and John 11:6, remember this: Jesus' delay was not His absence. His silence was not indifference. His timing was not a mistake.

And your faithfulness is not being wasted.

Jesus' delay was not His absence. His silence was not indifference. His timing was not a mistake.

Neither is your faithfulness.

One day, you'll look back and realize that while you were asking God to rescue something that seemed to be slipping away, He was quietly accomplishing something far greater than you could see.

And one last thought.

Maybe no one has told you this lately... but you need to know.

You're not failing because you're in a difficult season. You're not forgotten because heaven feels quiet. You're not alone because the road has become hard.

Stay faithful.

Keep your eyes on Jesus.

Keep doing the next faithful thing.

The God who called you is still walking with you.

If this article found you in one of those difficult seasons, let me encourage you not to walk through it alone. You need people in your life who understand your role as a pastor, and the best people for that are other pastors. At Pastor to Pastor we are only an email or a phone call away. We can walk your through the stress, the issues and the problems of ministry. We can help you connect with a “Band of Brothers” that you can build long term relationships with, so that you can grow together and minister to each other.

Take some time to explore our Pastor to Pastor website, go through our resources, and see the things we offer. Get connected because ministry can be hard. And we want to come alongside you to help as your walk out the call of God on your life.