Darrin Patrick > Quotes

“Worry is worthless. It can't change the past or control the future. It only spoils the moment.”
― Darrin Patrick

“Most churches do not grow beyond the spiritual health of their leadership. Many churches have a pastor who is trying to lead people to a Savior he has yet to personally encounter. If spiritual gifting is no proof of authentic faith, then certainly a job title isn't either.

You must have a clear sense of calling before you enter ministry. Being a called man is a lonely job, and many times you feel like God has abandoned you in your ministry. Ministry is more than hard. Ministry is impossible. And unless we have a fire inside our bones compelling us, we simply will not survive. Pastoral ministry is a calling, not a career. It is not a job you pursue.

If you don’t think demons are real, try planting a church! You won’t get very far in advancing God’s kingdom without feeling resistance from the enemy.

If I fail to spend two hours in prayer each morning, the devil gets the victory through the day. Once a month I get away for the day, once a quarter I try to get out for two days, and once a year I try to get away for a week. The purpose of these times is rest, relaxation, and solitude with God.

A pastor must always be fearless before his critics and fearful before his God. Let us tremble at the thought of neglecting the sheep. Remember that when Christ judges us, he will judge us with a special degree of strictness.

The only way you will endure in ministry is if you determine to do so through the prevailing power of the Holy Spirit. The unsexy reality of the pastorate is that it involves hard work—the heavy-lifting, curse-ridden, unyielding employment of your whole person for the sake of the church. Pastoral ministry requires dogged, unyielding determination, and determination can only come from one source—God himself.

Passive staff members must be motivated. Erring elders and deacons must be confronted. Divisive church members must be rebuked. Nobody enjoys doing such things (if you do, you should be not be a pastor!), but they are necessary in order to have a healthy church over the long haul. If you allow passivity, laziness, and sin to fester, you will soon despise the church you pastor.

From the beginning of sacred Scripture (Gen. 2:17) to the end (Rev. 21:8), the penalty for sin is death. Therefore, if we sin, we should die. But it is Jesus, the sinless one, who dies in our place for our sins. The good news of the gospel is that Jesus died to take to himself the penalty of our sin.

The Bible is not Christ-centered because it is generally about Jesus. It is Christ-centered because the Bible’s primary purpose, from beginning to end, is to point us toward the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus for the salvation and sanctification of sinners.

Christ-centered preaching goes much further than merely providing suggestions for how to live; it points us to the very source of life and wisdom and explains how and why we have access to him. Felt needs are set into the context of the gospel, so that the Christian message is not reduced to making us feel better about ourselves.

If you do not know how sinful you are, you feel no need of salvation. Sin-exposing preaching helps people come face-to-face with their sin and their great need for a Savior.

We can worship in heaven, and we can talk to God in heaven, and we can read our Bibles in heaven, but we can’t share the gospel with our lost friends in heaven.

“Would your city weep if your church did not exist?”

It was crystal-clear for me. Somehow, through fear or insecurity, I had let my dreams for our church shrink. I had stopped thinking about the limitless things God could do and had been distracted by my own limitations. I prayed right there that God would forgive me of my small-mindedness. I asked God to forgive my lack of faith that God could use a man like me to bring the message of the gospel through our missionary church to our lost city. I begged God to renew my heart and mind with a vision for our city that was more like Christ's.”
― Darrin Patrick, Church Planter: The Man, The Message, The Mission

“When we think of pride we tend to think about arrogance—the guy who talks about himself all the time. But we don’t often recognize it in the guy who spends his days worrying about his own success even if he never says a word about it. They are both consumed with themselves, but their pride takes different forms. Pride is ultimately an inordinate focus on the self.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“Faith, not cowardice, takes the step into unknown territory for the sake of Jesus Christ and His church. Love, not self-preserving protectiveness, sacrifices its own life that others might live. Hope of new life, not resignation to inevitable decline, yields itself up in the quest for a better future.”
― Darrin Patrick, Replant: How a Dying Church Can Grow Again

“Well-meaning members lose sight of their role as servants and become increasingly focused on controlling the very church they are called to serve. When a serving heart is replaced by a controlling heart, division is bound to ensue. And when selfish division lies unchallenged, areas of ministry and service become turfs to be defended, and brother and sisters in Christ become opponents and obstacles to individual accomplishment.”
― Darrin Patrick, Replant: How a Dying Church Can Grow Again

“Our lack of discipline destroys our freedom. Because we try and don’t train wisely, we end up being emotionally driven. We are slaves to the spectacular and the spontaneous. Most men would rather be entertained than be a part of transforming the world, and that erodes manliness and undercuts our confidence. If we can’t control ourselves, then we will be controlled by everything else. The angry, domineering masculinity that is so dangerous arises in part because impotent men lack self-control. They lash out because they are frustrated that they cannot control others around them. But they do not control themselves, either, and self-control is where true freedom begins.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“Humility is not just declaring that you are not God. It is deciding daily to not be God.”
― Darrin Patrick

“Authentic friendship is not one-sided. It is an equal commitment from both parties. True friends both give and receive. True friends know you and want to be known by you—celebrate you and are willing to be celebrated by you. They challenge you and seek to be challenged by you. And they serve you and are willing to be served by you.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“Part of the problem is that we have no idea what a friend actually is. A friend is someone who knows your hopes, dreams, and fears. They don’t stay on the surface—they go deep. And they are committed to help you conquer your fears, live out your dreams, and grow in your character.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“Discipline is rarely enjoyable, but almost always profitable.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“Cultivate relationships with others before we need them. The best way to grow before our circumstances force us to is to cultivate relationships with others. There is no coachability apart from the risk and accountability that comes with being in relationships with others.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“Most people think that Christianity is spelled DO: they look at the Bible or the life of Christ, and they simply try hard to live like Jesus. Christianity is really spelled DONE: it is what Christ has done that enables us to live a life of obedience.30”
― Darrin Patrick, Church Planter

“We also need to quit using our fathers as excuses for our lives now. It is too easy to blame everything on our “dad issues.” They’re important, yes, but once we recognize them, we have to begin to take responsibility for ourselves and accept our own roles in our problems. Many men are tempted to look at others for their problems when they should be looking at themselves.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“A good preacher, for example, must be able to exegete not only the text but also the culture of the hearers in order to be a faithful and fruitful missionary. We are to bring the gospel through the church to the world and avoid allowing the world to influence the church and corrupt the gospel. This definition also hints at the thoroughness required in contextualization. It must be comprehensive. This involves examining every aspect of the text being preached and the truth being explained through the eyes of those who are listening to that truth.17 This is why a missional pastor should always preach as if there are unbelievers in the crowd. He should never assume that his audience is comprised only of those already convinced of the truth and power of the gospel. We must literally consider everything we do through the lens of the unbeliever, always asking the question, “How does this come across to unbelievers?”18”
― Darrin Patrick, Church Planter

“I believe males should really be men. We don’t need more boys, we need real men. Strong, godly, mature men. No man is perfect and we will all fall short at times.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“ARE YOU A SETTLER, DRIVER, OR REBEL?”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“Fear Some people are so consumed by their fear of what will come tomorrow that they cannot embrace today. They worry that if they enjoy something a little too much, they will be devastated if it goes away. As a result, people who are consumed by fear are always hedging their bets, always pulling back at the last second from the edge of truly enjoying life.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“In my career and life I have watched many men fail. They didn’t fail because they weren’t passionate. They didn’t fail because they didn’t try. They didn’t fail because they didn’t work hard. Many of them failed because they didn’t prepare or, more specifically, weren’t prepared. They just weren’t ready to be men. Biologically they were ready, able to reproduce. Vocationally they were ready, empowered by formal or informal education. But, emotionally and spiritually they were not ready to assume the responsibilities of manhood. Most of them had no models for how to be men and some of them rejected the models they did have.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“Once a month I get away for the day, once a quarter I try to get out for two days, and once a year I try to get away for a week. The purpose of these times is rest, relaxation, and solitude with God. Some of us are so busy that we are not giving God access to our hearts. By slowing down and spending some unhurried time away from our ministry, we can allow God to speak into our lives. For those of you who are reading this who are totally dry, consider taking a sabbatical, a season off from ministry. One counselor told me that pastors should go on a three-month sabbatical once every seven years, or even a six-month sabbatical if possible. Trust God to maintain the ministry in your absence. You will be better able to serve your people once you are refreshed.”
― Darrin Patrick, Church Planter

“The gospel actually saves, because in the gospel the God of the universe acts.”
― Darrin Patrick, Church Planter

“The Western world is in need of new churches. In some cases churches must multiply and plant new churches from scratch, while in other cases existing churches must and should be revitalized—in essence, they must be “replanted.”
― Darrin Patrick, Replant: How a Dying Church Can Grow Again

“The Organization Kid.”4 These kids are always going, always on the run, always trying to beef up their résumés so they can achieve all their dreams. But the problem is that once they “arrive,” they find themselves no more content than they were on the journey.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“At his baptism Jesus heard the Father’s voice: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17). Before he lifted a finger to touch a wounded body or spoke a word to transform a wounded spirit, before he accomplished any ministry whatsoever, Jesus knew in the depth of his being that he had his Father’s approval. His motivation for his life and ministry was the gratitude that he had because of the Father’s”
― Darrin Patrick, Church Planter

“A MAN WITHOUT A MAP WILL BE A MAN WITHOUT A HEART; HE’LL LACK BOTH PASSION AND COMPASSION.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“We need the true hero. We need Jesus.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“Manhood isn’t something we pursue because we want fulfilling lives for ourselves, to make our own experience of the world more awesome and glorious. True manhood affects others. When men act like men, everyone else around is free to be who they are.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“Beneath the word confess is a sense of togetherness: it means “to acknowledge something with someone else.”2 A man who confesses wants to remain with others. He doesn’t want to be alone in his lies and deceptions. He wants fellowship, community, the company of friends.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“Second, Jesus is calling his disciples to learn to observe all that he commanded. The word “observe” here means “obey.”2 Jesus does not want his followers to settle for a head full of knowledge about theology; he wants his followers to actually obey (i.e., keep, do, live out) the revealed teaching of God’s Word. And what is it that he wants us to obey? What does it mean to observe all that he commanded? Jesus summed it up with two commandments. In Mark 12:30–31 Jesus sums up the law by explaining the two most important commandments. “‘And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” To observe all that Jesus commanded is primarily going to look like loving God and loving people.”
― Darrin Patrick, Church Planter

“Self-pity is the voice of pride in the heart of the weak .”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits

“When we meet Jesus, we realize that we don’t have problems—we are the problem.”
― Darrin Patrick, The Dude's Guide to Manhood: Finding True Manliness in a World of Counterfeits