Even If i Walk Alone

Instructing and encouraging you to live your life as a disciple of Jesus

Daily Life

Living in Obedience

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Because of my Scottish heritage, I think I’m biased towards Scottish thinkers and writers. One of my favorites is Andrew Murray, a minister in the 1800s. Murray was a devoted disciple who left many soul-searching and convicting books as his legacy. As I was reading some of his writing this week, I saw this: “The Father in heaven asks, requires, and expects all of His children to give Him whole-hearted and entire obedience all day long, every single day.”

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It seems like a daunting task, but then I suppose if it was easy, we would find many more joining us. If it was easy, the path would be wide instead of narrow (Matthew 7:13-14). No, following Jesus is not the easy path in life, but it is the only one worth following. And if we will brave this path, we must understand it requires our obedience to Jesus every step along the way.

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The Real Test

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For a couple of decades, my passion was playing the drums. Like many kids of my era, I dreamed of playing on the biggest stages and touring the world. During those days, my musical hero was Neil Peart, the drummer and lyricist for the band Rush. I modeled everything I did after him, and his writing continues to influence my style to this day. While there are no indications Neil had a relationship with Jesus, he said and wrote many wise things that can apply to our Christian walk.

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I was reminded recently of something he once said: “The real test of a musician is playing live.” In an age where there is no shortage of teaching and preaching, it is important to remember the real test of a disciple comes from how we live. As James, the brother of Jesus said, we must be doers not just hearers of the Word (James 1:22).

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Impact or Excuses

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We can make an impact or excuses, but we cannot make both. If we want our lives to make a difference, we don’t have the time to make excuses. Nowhere in Scripture do we ever see Jesus make an excuse. He was never too tired, too hungry, too busy, too young, or too old. He didn’t worry about His social status or what others thought of Him.

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And He never put off what He knew He had to do. As Jesus hung on the cross, he said, “It is finished.” He completed His mission. The lesson is powerful: when you refuse to make excuses, your impact increases exponentially.

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Think of Jesus

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It’s sad, but it seems far too easy to forget what Jesus did for us. He was a man unlike any other. Yes, we can explain this by the fact Jesus was at once fully God and fully man. How could He help but be extraordinary? It’s important to recognize that in His humanness, Jesus experienced the free will to choose His path. He didn’t have to be obedient, but He chose to on our behalf. Before Christ went to the cross, He asked the Father to provide another option (Matthew 26:36-39).

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He didn’t want to go to the cross, but He went so we might live. Jesus could have saved Himself, but He did not. Imagine the horror among all those who were torturing Him if Jesus would have suddenly called 10,000 angels to assist Him. He could have done that, but He didn’t. He kept His love for God and His love for every human soul at the forefront. Jesus could have saved Himself but opted instead to save you and me.

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Self-Promotion

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To me, the teachings of A. W. Tozer remain timeless. Perhaps no one else in history resonates with me as he does. Though he passed away nearly sixty years ago, his words are as relevant today as they were when he was preaching. The things he said are almost prescient. In a quote I read from him this week, he said, “I am not in the business of promoting myself; I am in the business of surrendering to the Holy Spirit.”

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Today, self-promotion is all the rage. It’s all about how many followers we have on Facebook, how many likes we have on Instagram, and whether we’re trending on Twitter. A new goal for many is to produce a video that goes viral on YouTube. Today the aim is getting the eyeballs of others to look at what we’re doing.

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