Leave the Altar

Stop Waiting for the Perfect Moment

Christian Devotional for Men | Leave the Altar and Lead Anyway

When you keep waiting for the perfect time to make it right with your wife or your brother your delay shines the light on your disobedience.

Are you willing to walk away from your comfort zone to follow what Jesus actually said?

Luke 10:27 (NIV), “He answered, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind,’ and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'”

Jesus didn’t make it complicated. Love God. Love others. That’s the commandment that all the others hinge on. And if we’re honest, most of the time we’re decent at the first one. We can go to church, read the Bible, maybe even lead a devotional. But when it comes to loving others, especially when it’s hard—we hesitate.

And let’s call it what it is: hesitation is disobedience dressed up in delay.

Jesus also said something that cuts deep in Matthew 5. He tells us that if we’re about to offer our gift at the altar, and we remember someone has something against us, we need to stop right there. Leave the altar. Go make it right. Then come back.

He didn’t say, “Take your time, pray about it for a few weeks, journal through it, and wait for them to text you first.”

No. He said, go.

Most of us aren’t lacking knowledge. We’re lacking courage.

Why? Because walking away from the altar is painful. That altar feels safe. It’s where you meet God, where you feel clean. But He’s saying, “Get up. Go do the hard thing. Then come back.”

That means picking up the phone. That means going to your wife and asking forgiveness. That means showing up for your son, even after you blew it the day before. That means removing the plank from your own eye before you start pointing out the specks in someone else’s.

But here’s the key—you don’t do it alone.

Jesus doesn’t ask us to be superhuman. He doesn’t expect you to grit your teeth and white-knuckle your way through it. He says ask.

“Ask and it will be given to you.” (Matthew 7:7 NIV)

So ask. Ask for the strength to face that conversation. Ask for the courage to walk away from the altar and into the awkward. Ask for His presence to go with you.

This isn’t about being a lonely hero. It’s about being obedient.

Oswald Chambers once said that God gave everything in Jesus, and now He wants us to give our all with the same kind of reckless abandon.

If you’ve truly given your life to Jesus, then that includes your pride, your grudges, and your need to be right. That includes the awkward conversations you’ve been dodging for months.

The altar is a place of peace, but obedience is often a path of discomfort. Still, it’s worth it. Because obedience will always bring you back to the comfort of the altar.

Here’s what I know: When I finally laid down the dagger of “I” and the shield of “Me,” and walked out into the battlefield of reconciliation, Jesus met me there. Every time. Not with shame, but with power.

He gave me what I lacked. Words I didn’t know I could say. Tears I didn’t think I could cry. Healing I didn’t think was possible.

And brothers, He’ll do the same for you.

If He took three nails for you, don’t you think He’ll give you what you need to forgive someone else? If He went to the cross to remove your sin, don’t you think He’ll walk with you as you remove the plank from your own eye?

The longer you stay at the altar refusing to go, the more your worship becomes noise. He wants obedience, not performance.

So stop stalling. Stop making excuses. The Holy Spirit has already nudged you. You know the name, the face, the conversation. Stop praying for an easier road. Start asking for strength to walk the one He’s already shown you.

Today, that might look like a text, a coffee, a hug, or a quiet “I’m sorry.”

But whatever it is, do it. Don’t delay. Don’t explain it away. Don’t wait to feel spiritual. Just go.

Ask God, then move. Leave the altar and lead.

Because real shepherds don’t just pray. They act. They serve. They step up.

Today’s “Shepherding in Action” Value is Courageous Obedience. This strengthens your role as a shepherd leader by proving that faith isn’t just something you believe, it’s something you obey—even when it costs you comfort.

Reflect / Apply / Share

1. Reflect – Where have I been waiting at the altar when God has already told me to go?
2. Apply – What conversation, action, or step of obedience can I take today to walk out God’s command to love others?
3. Share – Who in my life needs to see what courageous obedience looks like lived out?

Bible References (NIV)

Luke 10:27 — “He answered, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind,’ and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'”

Matthew 5:23–24 — “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them, then come and offer your gift.”

Matthew 7:7 — “Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you.”

Personal Prayer

Father, give me the strength to leave the altar and do what You’ve already told me to do. I don’t want to delay any longer.

These weekday reflections flow from my time in God’s Word. I invite you to join me and other Men of the Shepherd in building Christ-centered homes—leading, discipling, and serving like Jesus.
If these reflections encourage you, please like, share, and pass them on so more men can grow in their calling.
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Why This Image?
This image shows a man who has just stepped away from the altar—leaving behind comfort and stepping into obedience. His steady gaze and quiet strength reflect the moment every man faces when he stops stalling, asks God for courage, and chooses to lead anyway.

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