Running To the Fire

Her face flooded with relief.

Kristin and I had the amazing opportunity to attend the ARC Europe Conference in Liverpool, England, at the beginning of June 2026. It was a gathering of pastors from America with pastors from all over Europe, attending with their teams.

There were many firsts on this trip. It was the first time ARC Europe was hosted outside of Ireland, where it originated two years earlier as ARC Ireland. It was the first time pastors outside the UK were invited to join. And it was the first time we were exposed to the foundational ministry these strong, brave pastors and spouses were doing to share the gospel of Christ and His love for people.

In America, we have a wonderful heritage of Christianity, with the church being part of the narrative of our nation. Whether you are a Christian or not, most Americans know about Christianity. Europe is far from this basic understanding. The prevailing thought was that Christianity centers on religion, orthodox practices, and history. In the evangelical church, the foundational theme is God — identifying Jesus as Savior, and daily growth practices that develop in relationship with Him. Even at lunch, when the waitress asked why we were in town, she was puzzled when we mentioned it was about church and a relationship with Jesus. To her, the largest cathedral in England (found in Liverpool) was simply a historical religious building. It is amazing to see how far the culture there is from grasping who God is.

And here is what I loved the most...

These pastors are building churches to help people take a step toward God through a relationship with Jesus. Often, that means working a regular job and leading a team of volunteers to be the church for their area. It is tremendously difficult and challenging to pastor when you work a full-time job elsewhere, have a family, and hopefully still have a life outside of all your responsibilities. Overall, the leaders I met are doing a remarkable job of holding all of this together.

One tough but powerful story from the trip: we were partnered with a couple who pastor in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He works full time in social media development during the week while pastoring the church. His wife serves part time as the church administrator and keeps all the moving pieces on track. Both of them are extremely talented with big hearts. We were scheduled to spend a full morning and lunch with them, working through their questions and challenges at the church. The night before, there was a stabbing and an attempted decapitation in Belfast. Due to the outrage and violence that followed overnight, the city shut down its schools the next day. This couple spent three and a half hours making phone calls, sending texts, and reaching out to everyone in their church to make sure people were safe and secure. They "ran to the fire" when others were running from it.

That is what a pastor does. When life is crazy, unbelievable, and extremely challenging, you put others first and take care of them. This couple pastored their church in a way that was humbling to watch. They showed the love, compassion, and fierce devotion to others that Jesus displays throughout the Gospels.

Back to the first line. While they were making all those calls, their three kids were at school when the city sent everyone home. One walked home from school, and another was picked up by a relative. The whole time they were caring for others, they were also waiting to hear about their own family's safety. It wasn't until the middle of lunch that they got the call that their last child was securely in the house and safe. Watching her face as she talked to the relative who had brought their child home and secured the house — that was the moment she finally gave herself permission to think about herself.

I am grateful for pastors who live the mission with God firmly planted as the primary focus, while love for others is displayed tangibly. I am humbled when I see it in real time — their ability to serve transcends emotions and feelings. God is moving in Europe. With pastors like this, the future is bright!