Respect the Process

This past week, I couldn’t help but think about the Bills’ win over Baltimore. For years, this team has been built on one simple mantra: “Respect the Process.” It’s something Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane have drilled into the culture. And here we are today, finally seeing the fruit of that long, patient work.

That phrase stuck with me—respect the process. Because the same truth applies to our walk with God. He wants us to have consistent and sustainable success in life. Not just quick wins, but the kind of growth that lasts. And that kind of success doesn’t happen overnight. It comes from training, growth, and faithfulness to His plan.

I like to say it this way: Respect the process, because the process brings the progress.

When we are faithful to what God has put in front of us today, even when it feels small or difficult, He is shaping us for fruit tomorrow. The situations He allows in our lives aren’t random. They’re intentional. Even the hard ones. God knows exactly what we need in order to grow.

Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 10:13 that God won’t let us face more than we can bear, and He always provides a way through. That’s comforting! But it’s also stretching, because it means God will continue to put us in places where our faith is tested and our trust in Him deepens. As Jesus said in Luke 16:10, “Whoever is faithful in very little is also faithful in much.” God is preparing us for greater things by how we respond to the smaller things right now.

Jesus and His Apostles

We see this clearly in how Jesus trained His apostles. In Mark 6, He sends them out in pairs to preach, heal, and cast out demons. Imagine how overwhelming that must have felt! How could they possibly know what to say, or what to do when things went wrong?

But Jesus hadn’t just thrown them into the deep end. He had been preparing them all along.

• In Mark 1, He called them and modeled preaching with authority.

• In Mark 2, He showed them what it looked like to face persecution.

• In Mark 3, He appointed them and clarified their priorities.

• In Mark 4, He taught in parables and revealed His power by calming the storm.

• In Mark 5, He cast out demons, healed, and even raised a girl from the dead.

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By the time Mark 6 came, they had already seen so much of His example. Jesus didn’t just tell them what to do—He showed them. He walked with them. And when it was their turn, they were ready. They preached repentance. They drove out demons. They healed the sick. They were able to do the very things that, up until that point, only Jesus had done.

Why? Because they respected the process.

A Personal Example

I’ve experienced this in my own life too. Over the past decade, I’ve had the opportunity to take on all kinds of projects—some small, some larger. Each one stretched me. Each one taught me something new.

Most recently, I’ve been working on painting an entire industrial warehouse. It’s been a massive project, with bigger challenges than anything I’ve done before—equipment issues, prep problems, unexpected setbacks. At times, it’s tempting to panic. But instead, I’ve learned to pause, pray, and keep moving forward.

And you know what? God has been preparing me for this all along. Every small project, every frustrating lesson, every time I felt out of my depth—it was all part of His process. And remembering that gives me the confidence to trust Him in the bigger challenges.

Respecting God’s Process in Our Church

The same has been true for our church family. Back in 2020, when we left our previous building, we had no idea what God had in store. We only hoped He would provide. But looking back, it’s clear He had a bigger plan. The years in the mall weren’t wasted—they were shaping us, preparing us, training us. And now, five years later, we’ve found a permanent home! That’s the fruit of respecting God’s process.

And I believe He’s just getting started.

Communion Reflection

As we prepare to take communion, I want us to reflect on Jesus’ own respect for the process God laid before Him. His road to the cross was anything but easy. Yet He trusted His Father’s plan, knowing it would lead to salvation for us all.

That same mindset—trusting God’s process, even when we can’t see the full picture—is what motivates me today. Because the truth is: God sees more than we do. He sees the whole story. And if we’ll surrender our path for His, we’ll discover that every step, every test, and every challenge has a purpose.

So let me leave you with this question: How are you going to respect the process that God has for your life today?

Because remember: Respect the process, because the process brings the progress.