God’s call is not only to respond in the present, but also to build for the future
There is a certain energy that comes from living close to the headlines.
A court ruling lands, a government policy shifts, a natural disaster tears through a region in Canada or overseas, or a wildfire forces families from their homes. Before the day is over everyone has an opinion, a concern or at least a reason to pay attention.
Those of us who work in the Christian media sector live close to those moments. Adrenaline comes with helping people make sense of what is happening. Our team rallies. Prayer lines light up. Churches mobilize. People want perspective, prayer and practical ways to respond.
The roots of Crossroads, the media ministry where I work, go back nearly five decades with the show 100 Huntley Street and now include digital media and prayer ministry. We pastor the nation through grief, uncertainty and hopelessness, committed to reveal the transforming story of Jesus in every situation.
People react to big news – public and personal – every day. We see it through our 24/7 prayer lines. When a diagnosis arrives, people call. When a marriage is struggling, people call. When someone is overwhelmed by grief or fear, they reach out for prayer instead of giving up.
That reaching out is itself an act of faith, looking for someone to hear and respond in prayer. Crossroads has answered 14.5 million prayer calls. Over the years it’s become clear to me that while the moment of reaction is important, what’s more important is how someone before us had already been faithful. They already built the ministry, trained the prayer volunteer and invested in the infrastructure so that when the moment of crisis arrived we were ready to meet it.
The most important Kingdom work is often invisible at first. It happens in ordinary conversations, faithful service, generous giving and daily obedience.
Way back when, the big news headline was Jesus’ miracles. People traveled great distances to see Him. People talked about Him, debated His teaching and followed Him from town to town. But beside the miracle of the day, Jesus was doing something else entirely. He was building. Every conversation, every meal, every lesson shared with His disciples was preparing people who would carry His story into the future. He was building something that would last beyond His time on earth.
Christian ministries today need to understand and follow this. The founder of Crossroads, David Mainse, did. He built one of Canada’s most recognized Christian media ministries, but he never confused the platform with the mission. Television was always a bridge, not a destination. His legacy wasn’t built on one show, it was built on decades of investment in people, prayer and evangelism.
When moments of national crisis came, Crossroads was ready not because we reacted quickly, but because generations before us had built something strong enough to bear the weight of the moment.
Every organization eventually faces the same question. Are we only reacting to the needs in front of us, or are we preparing for the needs that haven’t arrived yet?
Building rarely feels urgent. It looks like investing in people before there’s a crisis, strengthening community before it’s tested and developing leaders before they’re needed.
The most important Kingdom work is often invisible at first. It happens in ordinary conversations, faithful service, generous giving and daily obedience. Yet those small acts become the foundation that allows us to withstand the pressures that inevitably come.
God is doing the deepest work in us while we are faithfully building, consistently showing up and laying a strong foundation. As Kevin Shepherd, the current CEO of Crossroads and YES TV, often says, "The purpose is in the process." The deep work is done long before the moment arrives, the crisis erupts or the world is looking for answers.
In many ways this is the work of the Kingdom. While the world often celebrates immediate results, God frequently works through patient cultivation, building our character and strengthening our integrity. The conversations, relationships and investments that seem small in the moment often become the foundation for something far greater than we can see.
Perhaps the question is not simply, "What are we responding to?" but "What are we building?"
There is a time to react. There is a time to build. Wisdom is knowing the difference, and faithfulness is giving ourselves to both.
Melissa McEachern is chief operating officer and chief content officer at Crossroads & Yes TV. Photo of blocks: Shutterstock.com