--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Part of my driving desire as a pastor is…" description: "\"Part of my driving desire as a pastor is to remove every obstacle except the cross that would keep people from coming to faith in Christ.\" — Mark Batte..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b7/mark-batterson-1137_christ_part-of-my-driving-desire-as-a-pastor-is_54369.jpg" --- # Part of my driving desire as a pastor is to remove every… ![“Part of my driving desire as a pastor is to remove every obstacle except the cross that would keep people from coming to faith in Christ.” quote by Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b7/mark-batterson-1137_christ_part-of-my-driving-desire-as-a-pastor-is_54369.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b7/mark-batterson-1137_christ_part-of-my-driving-desire-as-a-pastor-is_54369.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b7/mark-batterson-1137_christ_part-of-my-driving-desire-as-a-pastor-is_54369.jpg) > “Part of my driving desire as a pastor is to remove every obstacle except the cross that would keep people from coming to faith in Christ.” [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker sees ministry as clearing all barriers to faith, except the crucifixion itself, which is essential and non‑negotiable. **In simple terms:** Faith is hindered by obstacles, not by the cross. Key Takeaway Remove obstacles, keep the cross. Themes faith obstacle removal sacrifice spiritual perseverance mission Mood determined hopeful Type ministerial motivational When to use this quote - church outreach - personal evangelism - counseling - community building Key Concepts pastoral duty Christocentric focus Practical Applications - preaching - mentoring Questions to Reflect On - What barriers might we unintentionally create for seekers? - How does emphasizing the cross shape our outreach strategies? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Christ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christ/) [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Driving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/driving/) [Obstacles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obstacles/) [Pastor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pastor/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) ## Related quotes > [I put a lot of my studies into my music and my writing. I want to be able to address real life issues in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trip-lee/i-put-a-lot-of-my-studies-into-my-music-and-my-writing-i-want-to-be/) [Trip Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trip-lee/) > [With a penetrating vision you can dissipate the obstruction, remove the obstacle, dissolve the wrong condition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-holmes/with-a-penetrating-vision-you-can-dissipate-the-obstruction-remove/) [Ernest Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-holmes/) > [I am a pastor so I eat and breathe the Church.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/i-am-a-pastor-so-i-eat-and-breathe-the-church/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [I think a pastor used to be viewed as the one-stop ministry shop. The pastor served on every committee, volunteered at every event, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/i-think-a-pastor-used-to-be-viewed-as-the-one-stop-ministry-shop-the/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [Religion is a very scary thing, because a pastor is in a position of power. And if you use that power badly, you ruin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-h-peterson/religion-is-a-very-scary-thing-because-a-pastor-is-in-a-position-of/) [Eugene H. Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-h-peterson/) > [When you subpoena one pastor, you subpoena every pastor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/when-you-subpoena-one-pastor-you-subpoena-every-pastor/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [The gifts that Yeshua left in the earth realm to enforce His authority were apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, and evangelists. The gift that gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-pierce/the-gifts-that-yeshua-left-in-the-earth-realm-to-enforce-his/) [Chuck Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-pierce/) > [Inconsistency on the part of pastors and the faithful between what they say and what they do, between word and manner of life, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/inconsistency-on-the-part-of-pastors-and-the-faithful-between-what/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [As a pastor I reinforced my vision over lunches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-maxwell/as-a-pastor-i-reinforced-my-vision-over-lunches/) [John C. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-maxwell/) > [Most pastors have a hard time grasping a vision. But vision is the indispensable quality of a leader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-maxwell/most-pastors-have-a-hard-time-grasping-a-vision-but-vision-is-the/) [John C. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-maxwell/) > [We are not being true to the artist as a man if we consider his art work junk simply because we differ with his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-are-not-being-true-to-the-artist-as-a-man-if-we-consider-his-art/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think pastors are the worst listeners. We're so used to speaking, teaching, giving answers. We must learn to be quiet, quit being so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-h-peterson/i-think-pastors-are-the-worst-listeners-we-re-so-used-to-speaking/) [Eugene H. Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-h-peterson/) > [There is a strain of loneliness infecting many Christians, which only the presence of God can cure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/there-is-a-strain-of-loneliness-infecting-many-christians-which-only/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [Let's be pastors who cast vision that are worth people giving their life for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-carter/let-s-be-pastors-who-cast-vision-that-are-worth-people-giving-their/) [Matthew Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-carter/) > [God often hides His blessing in trouble or trial, which makes it all the sweeter when it comes our way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/god-often-hides-his-blessing-in-trouble-or-trial-which-makes-it-all/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) ## More by Mark Batterson > [“The path of least resistance never gets us where we want to go. Shortcuts always end up being cul-de-sacs. The key to spiritual growth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/the-path-of-least-resistance-never-gets-us-where-we-want-to-go/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [If you've never had a God-sized dream that scared you half to death, then you haven't really come to life. If you've never been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/if-you-ve-never-had-a-god-sized-dream-that-scared-you-half-to-death/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [The Bible is the place where God bears His soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/the-bible-is-the-place-where-god-bears-his-soul/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [One God idea is worth more than a thousand good ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/one-god-idea-is-worth-more-than-a-thousand-good-ideas/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [“even if the people could no longer hear God, he believed that God could still hear them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/even-if-the-people-could-no-longer-hear-god-he-believed-that-god/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [“100 percent of the prayers I don’t pray won’t get answered.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/100-percent-of-the-prayers-i-don-t-pray-won-t-get-answered/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [“You can’t play the man if you don’t pray the price. That’s how God turns the heart. You’ll never be a perfect parent, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/you-can-t-play-the-man-if-you-don-t-pray-the-price-that-s-how-god/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [The antidote for fear of failure is not success but small doses of failure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/the-antidote-for-fear-of-failure-is-not-success-but-small-doses-of/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [God is in the résumé-building business. He is always using past experiences to prepare us for future opportunities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/god-is-in-the-r-sum-building-business-he-is-always-using-past/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [“Society's goal is to make us less foolish. From the cradle to grave the pressure is on: "Be normal!" Our inner fool may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/society-s-goal-is-to-make-us-less-foolish-from-the-cradle-to-grave/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [If you aren't hungry for God, you are full of yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/if-you-aren-t-hungry-for-god-you-are-full-of-yourself/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [In my experience, take the Holy Spirit out of the equation of your life and it spells boring. Add it into the equation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/in-my-experience-take-the-holy-spirit-out-of-the-equation-of-your/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [When we cling too tightly to what God did last, we often miss what God wants to do next.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/when-we-cling-too-tightly-to-what-god-did-last-we-often-miss-what-god/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [Uniqueness isn't a virtue. It's a responsibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/uniqueness-isn-t-a-virtue-it-s-a-responsibility/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [Do you trust that God is for you even when He doesn’t give you what you asked for?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/do-you-trust-that-god-is-for-you-even-when-he-doesn-t-give-you-what/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) [Explore all 283 Mark Batterson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) ## More Christ quotes > [I think, here's what I've realized from interviewing people, and I've been very open about my Catholicism and my love of Christ and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-mohr/i-think-here-s-what-i-ve-realized-from-interviewing-people-and-i-ve/) [Jay Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-mohr/) > [“I would even go so far as to say that the mythical character of a life is just what expresses its universal human validity.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-g-jung/i-would-even-go-so-far-as-to-say-that-the-mythical-character-of-a/) [C.G. Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-g-jung/) > [Set NOT your hearts on the flowers of this world. They shall fade and die. Prize the Rose of Sharon and the Lily of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/set-not-your-hearts-on-the-flowers-of-this-world-they-shall-fade-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When the Lord Jesus Christ became my surety . . . He went to Calvary's cross, and all my guilt was charged against Him.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-allen-ironside/when-the-lord-jesus-christ-became-my-surety-he-went-to-calvary-s/) [Henry Allen Ironside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-allen-ironside/) > [It's going to be used in the last days to get people to come against Christ, and that's the issue: they come against the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-lahaye/it-s-going-to-be-used-in-the-last-days-to-get-people-to-come-against/) [Tim LaHaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-lahaye/) > [May nothing entice me till I happily make my way to Jesus Christ! Fire, cross, struggles with wild beasts, wrenching of bones, mangling of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignatius-of-antioch/may-nothing-entice-me-till-i-happily-make-my-way-to-jesus-christ-fire/) [Ignatius of Antioch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignatius-of-antioch/) > [Whoever does not seek the cross of Christ doesn't seek the glory of Christ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-the-cross/whoever-does-not-seek-the-cross-of-christ-doesn-t-seek-the-glory-of/) [John of the Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-the-cross/) > [It was no accident, no coincidence, that the seasons came round and round year after year. It was the Lord speaking to us all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-rivers/it-was-no-accident-no-coincidence-that-the-seasons-came-round-and/) [Francine Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-rivers/) > [Christ never preached any funeral sermons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-l-moody/christ-never-preached-any-funeral-sermons/) [Dwight L. Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-l-moody/) > [The emerging church movement has come to believe that the ultimate context of the spiritual aspirations of a follower of Jesus Christ is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samir-selmanovic/the-emerging-church-movement-has-come-to-believe-that-the-ultimate/) [Samir Selmanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samir-selmanovic/) > [ T\]he church is not a place. It's not a building. It's not a preaching point. It's not a spiritual service provider. It's a people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-building-it-s-not-a-preaching/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [Bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. Take what I cannot give: my heart, body, thoughts, time, abilities, money, health, strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-prentiss/bring-into-captivity-every-thought-to-the-obedience-of-christ-take/) [Elizabeth Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-prentiss/) > [One thing the young Christian should be taught as quickly as possible after his conversion is that Jesus Christ is all he needs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/one-thing-the-young-christian-should-be-taught-as-quickly-as-possible/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If you don't plan to live the Christian life totally committed to knowing your God and to walking in obedience to Him, then don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-arthur/if-you-don-t-plan-to-live-the-christian-life-totally-committed-to/) [Kay Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-arthur/) > [Lord, send Your life throughout the entire church. Visit Your church; restore sound doctrine and holy, earnest living. Take away from professing Christians their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/lord-send-your-life-throughout-the-entire-church-visit-your-church/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) [Browse all 9,006 Christ quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christ/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Part of my driving desire as a pastor is to remove every obstacle except the cross that would keep people from coming to faith in Christ.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Batterson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/part-of-my-driving-desire-as-a-pastor-is-to-remove-every-obstacle/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Christ" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/part-of-my-driving-desire-as-a-pastor-is-to-remove-every-obstacle/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b7/mark-batterson-1137_christ_part-of-my-driving-desire-as-a-pastor-is_54369.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b7/mark-batterson-1137_christ_part-of-my-driving-desire-as-a-pastor-is_54369.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b7/mark-batterson-1137_christ_part-of-my-driving-desire-as-a-pastor-is_54369.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Part of my driving desire as a pastor is to remove every obstacle except the cross that would keep people…” — Mark Batterson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Mark Batterson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Part of my driving desire as...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/part-of-my-driving-desire-as-a-pastor-is-to-remove-every-obstacle/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/part-of-my-driving-desire-as-a-pastor-is-to-remove-every-obstacle/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```