In the summer of 2009, I found myself staring professional death in the face. I was done with ministry—out! I'd spent the previous year getting hammered by the other leaders in the church. Church planting is hard enough without having to fight the very people you thought had your back. When I confronted a member of the board who had spent six months sabotaging my relationship with the rest of the board, he threatened me physically. That's how bad things had gotten. I was exhausted. My wife was depressed. My children were confused. It was the lowest point in my life.

I remember going home and telling my wife about the incident with the board member. We just sat silently, staring at each other across the kitchen table. The next two weeks were brutal. I was scheduled to leave for Atlanta to do some doctoral work, so I was able to escape. My poor wife was left to deal with the fallout. People called asking about what had happened. Some who had been supportive turned cold and distant. ...