Reclaiming My Story: Things Can Be Scary and Okay at the Same Time
In recent weeks, I was reminded that, in some circles, I’m still seen as “the guy who failed at starting a church.” It’s a frustrating and reductive label, ignoring not only the nuances of church planting but also the fact that the world faced an unprecedented global pandemic that shut down everything for months. Even so, as I’ve shared in other reflections, I know I was successful.
As I revisited memories of that season—watching old videos from the church—I came across the recording of my sermon from Easter Sunday, 2021. This was my first in-person sermon in over a year, delivered outside in a park. What makes this moment particularly poignant is that, even as I preached with all the passion and faith I could muster, I carried a secret no one else knew: the church would soon be shutting down.
Yet, as I listened to my own words nearly four years later, I was struck by their truth and power:
We are all entering an unknown future, filled with terror, amazement, and fear. And it’s into this unknown future, filled with terror, amazement, and fear, I want you to know that “things can be scary and okay at the same time.”
Remember, Jesus speaks to us and says, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” And then Jesus invites us to finish the story.
Amidst all the fear, all the uncertainty, all the confusion, whether or not we can discern what’s happening, God is turning the world, literally and figuratively. God has still got this. God has got us.
No matter what comes our way, no matter what obstacles arise, no matter what changes we still have to bear, we are invited to finish our story and keep telling the story of Jesus.
Look, I don’t know how my story will end.
I don’t know how your story ends.
I don’t know how the story of this church ends.
But this I do know: we still have a story to tell, and our story still matters, no matter how it ends. As scary and uncertain as things might be, as much as we wish we could know what’s coming, God has still got this. God has got us.
“Things can be scary and okay at the same time.” Keep living your story. Keep telling his story, the story of Jesus.
For the past four years, whether because of shame, disappointment, discouragement, or something else, I’ve allowed others to tell my story for me.
Stories like:
“He’s a failed church planter.”
“He didn’t have what it takes.”
“He wasn’t up to the task.”
“He’s not worth another opportunity.”
That ends today.
As I revisit those words from my sermon, I choose to reclaim them for myself. I will no longer allow others to hijack my story to advance their own narrative or shift responsibility away from themselves.
And so I say to myself, for myself:
Amidst all the fear, all the uncertainty, all the confusion, whether or not I can discern what’s happening, God is turning the world, literally and figuratively. God has still got this. God has got me.
No matter what comes my way, no matter what obstacles arise, no matter what changes I still have to bear, I am invited to finish my story and keep telling the story of Jesus.
Look, I don’t know how my story will end.
But this I do know: I still have a story to tell, and my story still matters, no matter how it ends. As scary and uncertain as things might be, as much as I wish I could know what’s coming, God has still got this. God has got me.
“Things can be scary and okay at the same time.”
I will no longer let others define my story.
I will start living my story.
And I will keep telling his story—the story of Jesus.
https://open.substack.com/pub/lorenrichmondjr/p/lessons-from-a-whiteboard-a-church?r=n4ugn&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true