There is one thing to remember as you plan and schedule your launch for First Priority. You have a date in mind, plans in place, and people interested, but have you inspected the ‘walls’?
11 So I went to Jerusalem and was there three days.12 Then I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. And I told no one what my God had put into my heart to do for Jerusalem. There was no animal with me but the one on which I rode.13 I went out by night by the Valley Gate to the Dragon Spring and to the Dung Gate, and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem that were broken down and its gates that had been destroyed by fire.14 Then I went on to the Fountain Gate and to the King’s Pool, but there was no room for the animal that was under me to pass.15 Then I went up in the night by the valley and inspected the wall, and I turned back and entered by the Valley Gate, and so returned.16 And the officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, and I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, and the rest who were to do the work. Nehemiah 2
Did you see it? The walls were so broken that the normal paths of travel were impassable. The same may be true for students in your community. The normal paths of healthy growth, development, and learning are broken. Does Sarah really care about chemistry if dad beat mom the night before? Will Steve really get the most out of the youth ministry tonight if his best friend that day tried to commit suicide and only he knows? Examine your community’s walls! Get with the guidance counselor to see what the students are dealing with in school. Set a meeting with local law enforcement to see what they are getting in trouble for on Friday nights and what their parents are getting arrested for. Dig around, but do it quietly and with humility. Your heart is passionate and concerned for the status of the community. As your heart grows more desperate for the Lord’s movement in your schools, you will begin to see the overflow of sharing the First Priority vision with those you talk to everyday.
Peace.
