Follow Me

Some people might think I'm crazy to love living by myself and having so much alone time , but so far, life in the new place has been great. I've always been one that loves alone time, but I feel like it is so much more of a necessity for me these days as I continue to process my time in Uganda and the things that God is still teaching me from it. One of the blessings of a little more down time than usual is time to read. I love to read, but a lot of times, I don't have the down time to do it. This week I've been reading a book and as always...it's got me thinking. Surprise, surprise.

This book put a new spin on a verse, which I love, that I'm sure most of us have read many times. I feel like it's such a trap for the Bible to become stale when we've read the same stories so many times. But I'm reminded again that God's word is alive and active, shaping me and changing me in different ways all the time. The verse is found in three out of the four gospels, and it's Jesus' simple invitation to the first disciples to "Come, follow me." So often the emphasis of that verse is put on the action of following, and rightly so. The focus is on being like Christ and following Him wherever He might lead (even to Uganda...Trust me this verse was special to me during that time period, but for a different reason.) It's about giving up control and living our faith without fear, or even if we're fearful, going regardless and trusting that because Jesus is leading, we'll be ok.

If we're going to go and follow Jesus somewhere, then doesn't that imply that we're also leaving something behind? I have to confess that I've never really thought about that, but the idea of following someone invariably means that we're leaving another place, or maybe another way of life. That's what I've been thinking about since reading this last night....following Jesus always means leaving something behind, whether it's a physical place, a lifestyle, or simply a comfortable place we've always know.

I wonder how often I miss out on things that God is willing to show me because I'm too slow to leave something behind. Maybe I'm too attached to something and not as attached to Him as I need to be. Maybe God is just calling us all to leave something behind and truly follow after Him for the first time in our life. Maybe it's a job that we're stuck in and feel like we can't get out. Maybe it's a relationship. Maybe it's an attitude. Maybe it's an acceptance of a mediocre life instead of the abundant life that God has promised. Maybe it's the need to control, rather than trust. Maybe it's a way of life that's comfortable, although not what it should be. I don't know what it is for you, but I can think of several things that it is for me. My prayer as I start my new life in this new place is that the fear of leaving the ordinary and the comfortable behind doesn't keep from following Jesus to new blessings.