— DAY 10 —
WEDNESDAY 12 AUGUST, 2026
BEING A PACE SETTER
SETTING THE SCENE
After leaving Egypt, the Israelites spent nearly a year camped at the base of Mount Sinai. They built the Tabernacle, received the law, and established their community. It was a season of stability and being comfortable.
But God never intended for them to settle in there permanently. So He spoke directly to Moses and told him ok, it’s time to move on, its time to move forward, it’s time for your to lead the people out of comfort into where I want them to be. He had to move millions of people out of a passive maintenance mindset into a ground taking mindset. As the leader, Moses had to lift his staff, step to the front, and set the pace.
SCRIPTURE PASSAGES
Deuteronomy 1:6–8 (NLT)
6 “When we were at Mount Sinai, the Lord our God said to us, ‘You have stayed at this mountain long enough. 7 It is time to break camp and move on. Go to the hill country of the Amorites and to all the neighboring regions—the Jordan Valley, the hill country, the western foothills, the Negev, and the coastal plain. Go to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, and all the way to the great Euphrates River. 8 Look, I am giving all this land to you! Go in and occupy it, for it is the land the Lord swore to give to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and to all their descendants.’”
COMMENT
The greatest enemy of a healthy ministry is not always opposition, it is stagnation. It is incredibly easy for leaders to slip into maintenance mode. This happens when we become content with just keeping the status quo, keeping things running as they are and not moving things forward. It is safe, predictable, and requires very little faith.
The reality is, the pace of the team is completely determined by the pace of the leader. If the leader is stagnant, those under them will most likely be stagnant or lost their passion for the ministry. Either that or they will be intensely frustrated with the leaders lack of initiative. The people under us are impacted massively by our vision, drive, and hunger for growth. As leaders, we have the responsibility to set the pace, to maintain a culture of excellence and continual improvement for His glory, not our own.
When God told Moses that the people had stayed at the mountain long enough, Moses couldn't just tell the people to move, he had to lead the advance. True leadership is about constant progression. It means you are proactively looking for ways to improve your ministry area, stretch your team members, and reach new people.
Choosing growth over maintenance requires us to step out of our comfort zone first. It means we stop waiting for things to happen, we pray, seek God and start co-labouring with God to see them happen.
When we have momentum, celebrate fresh initiatives, and refuse to let our team settle, the entire atmosphere shifts. We become a leader who paves the way for the future rather than one who merely guards the past.
Can you see where your ministry area is now?
Have you spent time with God to gain his perspective on where he wants to take it next?
What changes are needed in your ministry area to move forward?
What’s stopping you from moving it forward?
Who do I need to talk to move things forward?
What do I need to pray into to see change come?
Moses’ proximity to the Lord enabled him to obtain direct input and direction from God Himself.
There is power in being a pace setter!
WAYS TO LEAD THE ADVANCE
Set the Pace by Example: Never ask your team to stretch if you are staying still. Be the first to try new methods, read new resources, and look for ways to expand your own leadership capacity.
Kill the Survival Mindset: Intentionally shift your language from survival to growth. Stop talking about just getting through the weekend or surviving the event. Start challenging your team to think about what it takes to double your impact.
Stretch Your Team Members: A maintenance leader keeps people in the exact same spots forever because it is easy. A growth leader regularly gives team members new responsibilities, forces them to step up, and helps them discover new gifts.
Evaluate and Innovate Regularly: Do not keep doing things simply because that is the way we have always done them. Constantly audit your systems, ask what can be improved, and bring fresh solutions to the table before things become stale.
Keep the Vision at the Front: Remind your team constantly of where you are going, not just what you are doing. Regularly paint a clear picture of the promised land God has ahead for your specific ministry area.
THE PACE SETTER SELF-ASSESSMENT
Pick the number that best describes where you feel you’re at right now. Wherever you are, pray about what might be your next step to move forward.
The Caretaker: I am completely stuck in maintenance mode. I am just trying to keep the wheels turning and avoid complaints. I hate change, resist new ideas, and my team is completely standing still.
The Stationary Worker: I do my job reliably, but I have no real drive for growth. I put out fires and keep the status quo intact, but I am not doing anything to actively push my team forward.
The Growing Pace Setter: I want to move forward and am starting to feel frustrated by stagnation. I am actively trying to innovate and stretch my team, though I still struggle to break out of old routines.
The Momentum Builder: I am consistently leading the advance. I refuse to let my team settle at the mountain. I constantly model growth, experiment with new ideas, stretch my people, and fiercely pursue what God has next.
ACTION POINTS
The First Five: Give God the first five minutes of your day in silence before checking your phone, asking Him to break any spirits of complacency or fear of change inside your heart.
The Innovation Audit: Look at one specific system or routine in your ministry area today. Identify how it has slipped into pure maintenance, and draft one practical change to inject fresh growth into it.
The Stretch Challenge: Identify one person on your team who has been doing the exact same role for a long time. Proactively connect with them this week and give them a new, higher level responsibility to stretch their capacity.
MAIN QUESTIONS
(Self Reflection)
Let’s Talk in the Chat
(on the Boot Camp group in Planning Center)One of the best parts of this journey is that we aren’t doing it alone. We’d love for our chat to be a place of real connection. As you go through each day, please jump in and share:
Self Reflection: What did the test reveal to you today?
God’s Voice: What is one specific thing you feel the Holy Spirit is whispering to your heart?
Growth Over Maintenance: Why is it so easy for us to get comfortable maintaining what is working rather than pushing for what is next, and how can you practically move your team forward this week?
Please Read:
Don't worry about sounding 'spiritual' The most encouraging thing you can share is your honest process. This is a self-reflection about what God is speaking directly to you about in YOUR life. Words like “I” and “Me” are encouraged, “we” and “us” less so.
PERSONAL PRAYER STARTER
"Lord, I’ll be honest, it is easy to get comfortable when things are stable, and I often prefer the safety of maintenance over the risk of growth. Forgive me for the times I have allowed my team to stay still because I was unwilling to move forward myself. Give me the courage of Moses to break camp. Help me to set a high spiritual pace, lead the advance, and constantly point my team toward the new territory You have for us. Amen."