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Scripture for this chapter
Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.
Psalm 42:11 KJV
At a glance
Support at home is thin, and Wilkerson must decide whether New York is a detour or the direction of his ministry.
The chapter is honest about cost rather than presenting the calling as uncomplicated.
UECF.NET summary
As the visits to New York multiply, the strain on Wilkerson's pastorate and family life grows. This chapter deals candidly with the cost side of the calling — long absences, a congregation that did not sign up for a citywide youth ministry, and Wilkerson's own uncertainty about whether he is chasing a passing burden or a genuine, long-term assignment from God.
The chapter frames this as a season of testing rather than defeat. Wilkerson keeps returning to the city even without a clear long-term plan, trusting that clarity about the shape of the ministry will come later, after obedience, rather than before it.
Key points
- Sustained ministry to a new community places real strain on existing relationships and responsibilities.
- Uncertainty about the future does not, in the book's framing, excuse present obedience.
- The chapter is honest about cost rather than presenting the calling as uncomplicated.
Related Scripture
For reflection and discussion
- What has a costly obedience required you to set aside, at least for a season?
- How do you keep going when you cannot yet see where a step of faith is leading?
- Who bears the hidden cost of your calling, and how do you honor that?
This page is an original UECF.NET study companion. It does not reproduce any text from The Cross and the Switchblade by David Wilkerson (with John Sherrill and Elizabeth Sherrill), which remains under copyright. Read the full chapter in a legally available edition of the book — see Further Reading & Legal Editions — or borrow the original 1963 edition via Internet Archive’s Open Library controlled digital lending.