Church planters tend to be lone rangers. In some respects, they have to be. There is a sense of isolation and responsibility that comes with church planting that is unavoidable. Being (1) rooted in the gospel, believing in it’s power to save (Rom 1:16), and God’s responsibility for saving people, not yours; and (2) having a strong team including future elders that can share the responsibility and hold you accountable are vital. But at the end of the day you will still feel like the buck stops with you, and to some degree that’s true.

That weight and responsibility tends to draw guys that are comfortable operating with a degree of isolation. Sometimes this is the sign of an experienced leader who is comfortable in his own skin and has enough wisdom to know when he is hearing from God and when he just ate bad pizza the night before. Other times it is foolishness ambition that is more rooted in proving one’s own worthiness than a genuine calling. Often it’s a mix of the two.

Proverbs 18:1 offers some great advice for those exploring a call to plant, and really for any leader:

“Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire; he breaks out against all sound judgment.”

That’s not just a verse about isolating yourself so you can pursue BAD things without others knowing about it. It’s also about isolating yourself to pursue GOOD things without godly input. Don’t pursue your calling outside of community. Make sure you have people in your life that have access to your deepest desires. And give them permission to speak into those desires, even if it’s not what you want to hear. If you find yourself making major decisions in isolation, that should serve as an indicator that things are out of balance. Remember, the greatest assessment tool we have for church planting is the local church.