WATCHWORD:
34 Then he called his disciples and the crowds to come over and listen. “If any of you wants to be my follower,” he told them, “you must put aside your own pleasures and shoulder your cross, and follow me closely. 35 If you insist on saving your life, you will lose it. Only those who throw away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live. 36 “And how does a man benefit if he gains the whole world and loses his soul in the process? 37 For is anything worth more than his soul? 38 And anyone who is ashamed of me and my message in these days of unbelief and sin, I, the Messiah, will be ashamed of him when I return in the glory of my Father, with the holy angels.” Mark 8:34-38
Meditation:
Decisions, Decisions
My dad was a Congregational Christian minister and that marked me as a “PK” throughout my youth. I suspect I was a challenge for my parents and my two older sisters, in many ways. Despite my early beginnings rooted in church, I did not have a solid relationship with my Lord. That was evident in the early part of my adult years, when I reasoned that being a Christian meant try hard to be a “good person”, and that was the key.
That “good person” idea began to change in the face of the challenges of a family with two young children, a change in my professional life, and poor decision making along the way. Inch by inch, God was leading me along a different way, and, at age 40, I finally accepted Christ and the whole tone and structure of my life changed. Oh, I’ve still made some questionable decisions, slipped and fell a couple of times, as we all do, yet, through it all, I knew that my Lord was there to guide me back on the path of “righteousness for His name’s sake.”
Have you ever felt the inadequacy of the words we use when trying to describe something very important that has happened in our lives? I have people in my life that I dearly love that live their lives without the awareness of the presence of the Holy Spirit within. How do you find the right words, the right actions, to turn the tide, to open eyes and minds? I know, that is the Lord’s work, but still, I care a lot for them and I want them to know the love and security of accepting Christ.
I think about the song, I have decided to follow Jesus, and it brings me back to the realization that following Christ is a private decision we make. It is a change in mind that we act upon, a personal repentance that we make, maybe in the face of difficult challenges in our lives. Our Lord uses all manner of ways to influence, nudge and to guide us along His Way. Sometimes it is words, more likely it is other people and circumstance that opens our hearts and minds to the Truth and the Way.
Think about it. You made this decision to follow Jesus. This was not a group decision, it was a solitary decision on your part. You knew there would be difficult times ahead, but you also knew that your brother Jesus would be there, always, watching over you and, at times, taking your hand. This is a decision you made, and one that you will stand by to the end. Your loved ones? They have their own decision to make. So be it.
A Life Decision:
I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus;
No turning back, no turning back.
Tho’ none go with me, I still will follow,
Tho’ none go with me I still will follow,
Tho’ none go with me, I still will follow;
No turning back, no turning back.
My cross I’ll carry, till I see Jesus;
My cross I’ll carry till I see Jesus,
My cross I’ll carry till I see Jesus;
No turning back, No turning back.
Prayer to Follow Jesus:
Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. Amen.
