Mark Batterson on the Slow (then Fast) Work of a Long Obedience

The Russell Moore Show

Christianity Today, Russell Moore

Religion & Spirituality, Christianity

4.8 • 914 Ratings

🗓️ 5 November 2025

⏱️ 47 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

What if the biggest changes in your life aren’t sudden at all—but have been building quietly for years? Watch the full conversation on YouTube In this episode, Russell Moore sits down with pastor and author Mark Batterson (National Community Church, Washington, D.C.; The Circle Maker, Gradually, Then Suddenly) to talk about how transformation, calling, and even faith itself often arrive–as Hemingway once put it–gradually, then suddenly. From hard decisions and hidden preparation to the slow work of God that looks instant only in hindsight, they explore why patience may be the most underrated spiritual discipline of all. Batterson and RDM talk about the writings of Eugene Peterson on the “long obedience” of a faith journey, the difference between patience and stagnation, how to know when you’re called to something and when you’re released from it, and why celebrity culture in the church short-circuits character formation. They get practical on habits (why 30 days feels like the hardest part), preaching long obedience in a city addicted to immediacy, learning grit without “snowplow” spirituality, and aiming at legacy that’s measured by who others become because of you. If you’re looking for wisdom without hurry, conviction without hype, and hope that can take a punch and keep walking, this is the episode for you. Resources mentioned in this episode: Mark Batterson, Gradually, Then Suddenly Ernest Hemingway, The Sun Also Rises Eugene Peterson, A Long Obedience in the Same Direction Keep up with Russell: Sign up for the weekly newsletter where Russell shares thoughtful takes on big questions, offers a Christian perspective on life, and recommends books and music he's enjoying. Submit a question for the show at [email protected] Subscribe to the Christianity Today Magazine: Special offer for listeners of The Russell Moore Show: Click here for 25% off a subscription. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	This paid message is from the 2025 holiday gift guide for book lovers from CT Creative Studio.
0:08.3	At Christianity Today, we believe in the miraculous magic of books.
0:13.4	This Christmas, we invite you to share the magic of reading with a book that's perfect for each person on your gift list.
0:24.6	Visit Christmas gift buying guide.com to browse our books.
0:30.6	God's always writing a bigger, better story, and you've got to give the author and perfector of faith full editorial control and understand that God wants to write his story through you.
0:38.3	Hello, this is Russell Moore, and this is the Russell Moore Show, brought to you by Christianity today.
0:46.3	Here, we look for signposts in a strange time by standing fast to what really matters.
0:53.3	Kingdom over culture wars, truth over tribalism,
0:56.4	pilgrimage over partisanship, sanity over cynicism, witness over winning, and Christ over everything.
1:03.4	Today we have a conversation to do just that.
1:18.6	I was thinking the other day about a big decision I had to make, and I couldn't make up my mind as to what to do.
1:23.5	And I was having a conversation with the late Tim Keller, who was giving me some advice on it.
1:31.1	And at one point, he stopped and said, you already know what you're going to do. There's a part of you that has known this and has been preparing for this for a long, long time. And there's just this
1:38.7	one last part of you, kind of your conscious mind, that isn't there yet. When he said that, I realized
1:45.7	there are so many times when that exact thing has happened, where something seems to be
1:51.7	just a sudden event or a sudden decision that is being made. And when I look back, I can see,
1:59.4	actually, it was in the works for a long time. And I'll bet you
2:04.8	can too, sometimes with things that are good and sometimes with things that are not good. And
2:10.7	that's why I want you to listen to this conversation that we're going to have today with
2:16.0	Pastor Mark Batterson, who is the lead pastor of National
2:19.1	Community Church in Washington, D.C.
2:21.2	Many of you will have read his books before.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Christianity Today, Russell Moore, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Christianity Today, Russell Moore and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.