Isaiah 43:16-19
16 Thus says the Lord,
who makes a way in the sea,
a path in the mighty waters,
17 who brings forth chariot and horse,
army and warrior;
they lie down, they cannot rise,
they are extinguished, quenched like a wick:
18 “Remember not the former things,
nor consider the things of old.
19 Behold, I am doing a new thing;
now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
and rivers in the desert.
When we think about the meaning behind leading in spaces without direction, some of us picture having a plane without a pilot or getting in a car without our GPS activated. There is always a sense of anxiety that resonates in the spirit of the one that is leading in ministry. It doesn’t make a difference if you are the lead pastor or the youth pastor, there is something about having to lead when the direction is not already defined. That is why the words of Isaiah at the end of verse 19 are so poignant. The end of the verse talks about the Lord making “a way out of no way” as the old church would say. It is making sure that we never forget that the Lord is constantly doing a new thing.
Leading in spaces without direction is about having someone that you can be in an accountability relationship with as you are leading. It also means understanding the following:
- Purpose: you will have to design with clarity where the ministry that we lead is going
- Process: you have to be okay with making adjustments
- Power: you have to resist doing ministry alone
- Position: you have to commit to the work and not the title
- Potential: God has given us the skills to create without a template
As you push through doing ministry in this cultural narrative, it will be paramount on you to see the creativity in doing a new thing that hasn’t been done before. It will require you to be okay being okay with the unknown. In the unknown is where you will be able to see God differently and to have God use you in a different way to advance the Kingdom assignment that He is calling you toward.