commitment

All In

September 22, 2016 by Tim Sherfy

In his book, “Renegade”, Vince Antonucci writes, “We want to follow Jesus and we want to live nice, safe, comfortable lives that are ‘normal.’ That’s a problem—because it doesn’t work. You can’t have both. Following Jesus means embracing a selfless, crazy, dangerous, God-obsessed life, and that’s something most people refuse to do.”

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It’s disappointing discipleship is becoming somewhat of a buzzword in churches because few I’m aware of qualify discipleship with Antonucci’s definition above. The disciples of Jesus left everything they knew behind to follow Him. They didn’t simply leave homes, jobs, and possessions, they left their passions and the only way of life they ever knew. Discipleship means going all in with Jesus.

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It’s Your Choice

September 19, 2016 by Tim Sherfy

Each one of us gets to decide whether or not we will follow Jesus. But none of us get to decide how we will follow Him. Our freewill ends when we choose to be a disciple. If that is indeed our choice, from that point forward, the way we live is determined by Jesus and not ourselves. It is the pledge we make to Him. Our freewill isn’t taken from us, it I surrendered by us. It’s your choice to follow Jesus.

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You get to decide. However once that decision is made, you are obligated to live life the way Jesus commanded you live it. Freewill is an amazing gift and should not be lightly given away. You must understand the cost. For those willing to count such a cost, the rewards of living life wholly surrendered to Christ are beyond words and incalculable. It’s your choice.

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Shortness of Breath

September 15, 2016 by Tim Sherfy

Whether we realize it or not, we are all suffering from a shortness of breath. Each inhale leaves us one less before we breathe our last. While this may sound morbid and depressing to some, it should not be the case for followers of Jesus. For me, the thought invokes both excitement and a sense of urgency. I have no greater desire than to be with Jesus.

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I don’t fear death and neither should you if you have placed your faith in, and pledged devotion to, Christ. Paul said to be absent from the body was to be in the presence of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:7-8). There is no fear in being surrounded by perfect love (1 John 4:18).

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Wrong Perspective

September 5, 2016 by Tim Sherfy

It’s so easy to spend our lives living from the wrong perspective. We make grand plans, spend our time earning a living, and serving God along the way. It sounds noble enough, but in truth we are living life backwards. We are looking through the lens of self-first instead of focusing our attention foremost on God.

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We should spend our days serving Jesus, and earn a living or pursuing our dreams along the way. Jesus will not take a backseat to anything or anyone. He is totally focused on helping you live your life in a way which glorifies the Father. This can only be accomplished in our lives by adopting a Jesus-first perspective.

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You Are What You Choose

August 29, 2016 by Tim Sherfy

Each of us is exactly who we want to be in our relationship with God. We know Him exactly as much as we choose to know Him. We love Him exactly as much as we choose to love Him. It’s far easier and more convenient to blame circumstances, surroundings, and our own backgrounds as being limitations for our walk with Christ.

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The truth is we are exactly the kind of disciple we have chosen to be. The only person responsible for how close our walk is to that of Jesus is the person we see in the mirror every day. We are responsible. We make the choices. We choose how close or how far away we are from God.