I hear it in my ears and sense it in my spirit like it was yesterday. Those are the words of one of my mentors, years ago.
They are simple words, offered by someone who could see me minimizing myself and God’s vision and mission for my life. But those words changed me.
His words sparked something in me that I never quite understood I needed until I needed them the most. That accomplishing God’s mission requires thinking big. It requires vision beyond what you can accomplish on your own.
It would be soon after the passing of my late wife, Wynter Pitts, in 2018 that I would allow these words to shape my life. Wynter passed very suddenly leaving me and my four daughters in the hands of the Lord. She also left behind a small but mighty ministry called For Girls Like You. I would jokingly call it a “For Profit Non-Profit” because it never made any money though it was blessing the life of thousands of girls. When she passed away, I immediately knew I was called to continue her work and that I was to convert this “for profit non-profit” into an actual non-profit.
It would require me becoming the chief storyteller for an amazing magazine for tween girls, building a board, and making a compelling pitch for why this mission needed to remain a public good beyond its founder’s life on earth. But I would need to do this while being a full-time executive pastor and widowed Dad of four girls, then age 14, 11 and twin 9-year-olds.
Ironically, it would be in the middle of the impossible nature of the moment that God would give me the grace and the faith to step up. To dream big! I had very little capacity as a grieving widow, but it turns out that is the perfect faith for God to show up and show off. And it’s a longer story for another day but He did. He would inspire me and empower me to lead my family and For Girls Like You, all while helping lead a church.
Over the last 6 years I’ve learned to think bigger. I’ve learned to tell the story of For Girls Like You through trial and error. I’ve learned how to motivate a board even beyond recruiting one. I’ve learned how to continue to persevere beyond what seems reasonable and trust the Lord to be bigger than I can even think or imagine. I’ve also learned to lead more humbly as a ministry executive and a dad to four girls, the first of which recently married.
But through those years and beyond, I’ve come to understand that thinking big isn’t enough.
You actually need to team big.
You need to surround yourself with people that can think as big as you around the vision God has laid out. And they need to think bigger than you in their area of expertise and core competency.
I think about my sister, Carmen, who stepped in to help me co-parent for nearly three years. She heard the Lord’s whisper and told me that she would move to Tennessee to help me if I needed her. After dealing with my pride, I gave in. And Carmen became a part of my team. She stepped into a gap and started taking responsibility that would allow me to be dad first. And her leaning into her expertise as a trained counselor brought healing and capacity to me and my entire family.
I think about Roberta Croteau, the editor that Wynter and I would providentially hire five months before Wynter’s passing. For nearly 30 years she had leaned into her gifts as a creative writer and magazine editor. Her preparedness and training prepared her for the moment when she would need to step in to continue a publication that most would think doomed without its founder.
Thinking big is necessary, but most of us settle for what’s ideal – what we can accomplish in our power and our strength. But if we are ever going to accomplish what God has deposited deep within each of us when it comes to Kingdom advancement, we must team bigger!
By God’s grace and in His sovereign plan, I’ve had the privilege of really getting to know the Big C Church, in all its color and variety over the years. Through those years, I’ve learned that I love the church, and I love building relationships. I’ve also learned that I love helping to shape and hone vision and I do it best when I’m a part of a team that cares about the mission as much as I do.
It’s been 7 years since the journey began and I’m realizing that God’s calling on my life is so much more than I ever thought. I can’t see the full picture but I’m coming into the awareness that God’s calling is so much bigger! Think Big Pitts, I find myself saying in my head even as I write.
Everything I’ve learned. The sharpening of my gifts. It all matters for the moment and mission ahead. He’s called me to pastor His people. To help disciple people around the resource God has entrusted to them. And I to help organizations think well about their role in discipling those that will fund the vision God has placed on their lives! It’s 100% stewardship for people and missions!
But I’m 100% sure the vision God has for my life will only come to fruition as I continue to team big – as I entrust my life and the mission God has for me to others that I will partner with along the way.
And now I encourage you. THINK BIG and TEAM BIG.
What is the God-sized vision that you are called into?
Who are the people and organizations around you that God is calling you to trust and move with?