Even If i Walk Alone

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

commitment

Achieving the Goal

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Many wise men have said, in one form or the other, that a goal not written down is merely a fantasy. I have proved this out in my own life. As followers of Jesus, our ultimate goal is to live a life that looks like His. We know this to be true at our core, and we express this fact to others. Have you ever taken the time to write down this goal? As long as it is just something we want to do or achieve, and as long as it remains only in our mind, the chances of obtaining the goal are almost zero. When we don’t write our goals down, they become elusive and our attempts at accomplishment are haphazard and scattered. Once we commit our goals to paper, they become more tangible and we can begin to develop plans to bring them to fruition.

The achievement of any goal essentially boils down to what we are willing to begin doing, what we are willing to stop doing, and how much self-discipline we are willing to bring to bear to achieve the desired outcome. Desiring to live a life that looks like Jesus has one distinct advantage over any other goal you may set out to achieve. That advantage is Jesus Himself. He loves you beyond measure and desires you to know Him more deeply than you already do. He excitedly waits to help you discover more of Him and to live in a manner that reflects His glory. Instead of disciplining ourselves out of duty, we discipline ourselves out of love. This makes working towards this goal far more pleasant than most others. Every step closer to Jesus improves the rest of our life exponentially. We may not gain financially as a result of our pursuit, but we will gain incredible joy and peace. Achieving the goal is rewarding, but the person you must become to achieve it is far more rewarding still.

Once you have determined to go all in and pursue Jesus at any cost – and you’ve written it down – you must then write out your “why”. Why is it that you want to live a life that looks like Jesus? Why is it that you want to give up everything to follow Him? What is your motivation? Following Jesus is hard, and you will face many times of discouragement. These are the times when many will turn back and make the tragic decision that it simply isn’t worth it. When you face trials, refer back to your “why” to discover again the reasons you have to push through the storm and emerge strengthened on the other side. Having clearly defined reasons for wanting to follow Jesus will help you keep everything in proper perspective and enable you to stand fast against the attacks of the enemy.

You have established your goal and determined your reasons; now it is time to plan. Write down what a true follower of Jesus looks like. How do they act? What sort of things do they say? Where do they hang out? With whom do they associate? Develop a clear mental image of what a true follower of Jesus looks like, and write it down. Be as detailed as possible. How do they spend their days? How do they interact with their family? Now take a look at your own life; how do you measure up? By looking at the description of the person you want to become, you should be able to see several areas where your own life needs to change. Work on one area at a time. Determine to change your life in that one area so that your own life begins to align with your description of the true follower of Jesus. What actions can you take today to start looking like that ideal picture? How will your life change over the next week and month to look more like that of a true follower of Jesus? Once you have established one area of your life to be more consistent with Christ, move on to the next. Always write down what needs to change and how you will accomplish this. Review these mini-goals daily, before going to sleep at night and when you awaken each morning.

The chances are good that if you are reading this blog you have a strong desire to follow Jesus with a reckless abandonment. It’s exciting and invigorating to know there are others out there who share the same passion. The difference between those who obtain this life and those who just wish they could, is simply a matter of focused discipline. Writing down what you want to achieve has a mysterious power to help you accomplish your goals; this mysterious power is called focus. Once you are focused you can move forward. Without focus, you will wander aimlessly, forever taking two steps forward and one step back. It’s time to move past wishful thinking and fantasy. It’s time to devote ourselves to the One who gave everything for us. Jesus was intentional and focused as He lived His life for us; now it’s our turn. Write down what you want to do; describe who you must become to do it. Then persist without exception, relying on God’s power to accomplish in you all He intends to do.

How (Not) To Grow a Church

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My Dad was a pastor so I grew up very aware of the inner workings of churches in America. I was privy to the strategies and techniques used to grow a church and the plans to attract more people each Sunday. It is both interesting and sad that church growth has traditionally been about the number of bodies in the pews rather than the actual development of the individual; but I digress. As an avid reader I have consumed many books on the subject of the Western church, megachurches, emerging churches, evangelism, church growth, etc. With that in mind, I believe I have discovered the one sure fire way to impede church growth (as defined by adding members): preach the Gospel. Most Christians I have talked to in my life attend their particular church because they preach the Gospel, or they leave a church because it does not. It makes me wonder exactly what Gospel they are talking about. Let’s take a quick look at a few teachings of Jesus to determine whether or not your church is actually preaching the Gospel.

In Luke 18:18-23, Jesus told the young man that if he wanted to follow Him, he would have to sell all of his possessions and give the money to the poor. When was the last time your preacher told the congregation they needed to start liquidating their material possessions and donate that money to care for the less fortunate in their town and around the world? How well do you think that sermon might go over? This isn’t some vague notion or the opinion of a learned scholar, these words came directly from the mouth of Jesus. How convenient that we have chosen to either ignore or explain away this teaching. This is part of the Gospel of Jesus. The good news is that He has come to bring life and justice, and sometimes justice means selling what we have in order to give to those who are hungry or homeless.

In the book of Matthew (chapter 8, verses 21 and 22), a man says he will follow Jesus, but first needs to go bury his father. Jesus rebuked him and told the man that if he wanted to be His follower, he would need to forget about his family. In fact, Jesus went so far as to say we must hate our mother, father, brothers and sisters if we would follow Him (Luke 14:25-27). I have heard more sermons preached on taking care of one’s own family than I have on hating them. The point is we must be so consumed with Jesus that everything we do in life is with Him in mind. All other obligations and responsibilities must be set aside when it competes with following Jesus. If a scheduling conflict forces you to choose between a kid’s soccer game and feeding the hungry at a soup kitchen, it has to be the soup kitchen every time. This is not going to be a popular message on Sunday morning, and I can only imagine the email the pastor would receive after preaching it. But this too is the Gospel. Our mission is to tell the world about Christ, to make disciples of all people. Everything we do must revolve around this purpose.

Finally, Jesus told another man who wished to follow Him that He had no home (Matthew 8:19-20). The implication is that if we would follow Christ, we too will be homeless; so much for the American dream. In the era of the “prosperity gospel”, this is not a popular topic. Western Christianity has come to be taught as some sort of slick panacea, a comfortable existence lived with a dose of compassion. The modern church has planted itself in the suburbs and consumed itself with programs to entertain and cocoon its members. Many churches have become nothing more than large social clubs where one must maintain a certain look and lifestyle in order to gain admittance; the homeless are often not welcome. Yet, the Gospel of Jesus, the true Gospel, states that if we would follow Him, we will have no place to lay our head at night.

Do you really want to attend a church that preaches the Gospel? The Gospel is amazing news indeed; it is the story of God’s love for His creation. It is the story of His redemption of our fallen and wicked world. It is the story of Jesus giving up His own life so that we might gain eternal life. There is more than this, however. The Gospel is also about our responsibility to spread the message to all nations. We are called to give up everything we own or hold dear for the purpose of furthering the Kingdom of God. We are called to sell our possessions, to renounce our earthly relationships and to live a life of utter dependence on Jesus. Not all will be faced with these trials, but all must be willing. If God chooses to bless us with even more than we give up, then it is for His glory. If He chooses to not return abundance to us in this life, it is also for His glory and we will be lavishly rewarded in the life to come. Are you willing to live your life in total surrender to Jesus? Are you willing to live out the whole Gospel, not just the comfortable parts? Your answers to these questions will determine whether or not you are a true follower of Jesus. Don’t get left behind.

How Far Would You Go?

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How far would you go to follow Jesus? It’s easy to say you love Him; most of us would even say we’d die for Him. In Matthew 10, Jesus tells His us that if we follow Him, the world at large will hate us. Are we willing to be hated by the world? The leaders of Israel were constantly conspiring to kill Jesus, or to trap Him in His own words. They were determined to take Him down, one way or the other. Are you prepared to live that way, under that kind of scrutiny? Again in Matthew 10, Jesus issues another warning, telling us that our own family members will betray, disown and kill us. They will do this simply because we choose to follow Jesus. Are you prepared to cause division and strife in your family? Are you willing to love God more than you love them? Obedience to the call of Jesus is not an easy road.

It doesn’t end here. Still in Matthew 10, Jesus tells his followers that they will be persecuted and tortured because of His name. This is not a calling for the marginally curious. Following Jesus is extremely serious, and you must be willing to pay the price before you endeavor to do so. We are not promised an easy, secure life; rather we are told by Jesus that we’ll be like a lone sheep surrounded by many hungry wolves (Matthew 10:16). We will suffer. We may die. We will alienate many around us, and we may lose our friends and family. These are the facts given by Jesus Himself; this is not a game. Following Jesus calls for a radical commitment devoid of any self-interest. Is the cost worth it to you? Are you still willing to come along?

In another passage in Matthew (chapter 8, verses 20-22), Jesus tells us we should expect to be homeless if we follow Him. This is almost unfathomable to Christians in the West who have intertwined their faith with the American dream. If we are traveling into all nations telling others about Jesus, just as He commanded us to do, then what need of a home would we have anyway? Jesus goes on to say that we should not even take the time to bury our family members. This is urgent, and there is no time to lose. The days are evil and counting furiously down. Time is against us, so we cannot deviate from our mission for even an hour. We have to reject all that the world offers us and instead, accept all that Christ will freely give. Though others may curse us and spit on us, we must respond by loving them, understanding that they are simply in need of a Savior and that God considers them to be of infinite worth. Though others may jeer and even torture us, we must remain steadfastly committed to praying for them, and loving them. This is what Jesus did. If we would follow Him, we must not waver.

Are you in? Are you still able to say that you truly love Jesus? Do you love Him to the extent that you would die for Him? Christ took the time to warn us of exactly what we should expect. There should be no surprises when it comes our time to face and endure trials and persecutions. Rather, we should seriously consider our walk with Him if we are not already facing these trials. Perhaps we’ve given in to the Westernized view of Christianity, the one that is replete with multi-million dollar buildings and with sermons proclaiming a safe, successful version of Christianity. This isn’t about being comfortable or feeling secure. This is about following hard after Jesus Christ with an unbridled and unrestrained passion. The road is narrow and difficult, and only a few will persist.

Let me ask once more, “Are you in?” Are you ready to literally lose everything for the sake of Jesus Christ? Are you ready to travel all over the world to proclaim His message? Will you endure being mocked, spit upon, and tortured? Will you concede all of your friends and family in order to follow Him? Are you willing to die for the sake of Jesus? How far would you go?

No Exceptions

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Every person who would be a follower of Jesus has the same responsibility. We must love Jesus with all that we are and all that we have. Our love must be expressed in the way we live our lives, the things that we do. Each one of us is accountable for how we spend our time and how we invest the resources that God has entrusted to us. It’s not just a select few that are called to the heavy lifting of living out our faith. Jesus never placed classifications on His followers. He never said that some were to feed the hungry while others could relax at home and indulge in their own excesses. No, Jesus said that each and every one of us was to go and tell others about Him, to care for the needs of others.

In our Western culture, there is a pervasive attitude that once we have accepted Christ we can pretty much coast through the rest of our lives. While some will embrace what it means to truly follow Jesus, far more will carry on with life as usual after professing Christ as their savior. It’s easy to lose sight of the urgency to build the kingdom when we live in comfort and freedom. We’ve been conditioned all our lives to aspire to modern conveniences and abundances. This is what success looks like; it’s the American dream. People accept Christ, live a moderately moral life and attend church regularly; and that’s it! That is the extent of their Christian life. Living a life that looks like Jesus is so much more than this. It’s more than sporadic acts of kindness. It’s more than being a joyful and generous person. A true follower of Jesus is one who actively seeks to be the hands and feet of Jesus in each moment of the day.

There is no excuse for any Christian to not live a life that looks like Jesus. In every activity we must do a heart check to determine if it is an activity in which Jesus would engage or one that would please Him. We are His servants, slaves of the King. Our freedom is found in doing the will of God; beyond that we have no latitude. We are not free to engage in activities that contradict our calling; this is disobedience. I have no problem proudly proclaiming myself to be a slave to Jesus. I am happy to give up everything I have for Him. There is no shame in slavery when we are yoked to Jesus. We are His servants, yes, but we are servants inundated with a love that is beyond our comprehension or measure. This is servanthood by choice. Why would someone choose to be a servant of Jesus and then show such disregard for His commands?

In Ephesians 5:15-16, Paul tells us that we must make the most of our time because we live in evil days. Making the most of our time does not include sleeping away our life, sitting on the couch for hours on end or engaging in entertaining but ultimately useless forms of recreation. I don’t want to stand before God and tell Him I could have done more for Him, but then I would have had to watch less television or hang out less with my friends. Jesus said that we could not be His follower if we didn’t hate our friends and family. This simply means that He must come first in all things and at all times. I firmly believe that God established the law of the Sabbath to allow us times of refreshment, a time to catch our breath. But the Sabbath is only set up as one-seventh of our time. Can we honestly say that we only spend that small amount of time on our own personal entertainment and relaxation?

There are no exceptions allowed for being a follower of Jesus. Your age, race or gender makes no difference. If we would follow Jesus, we must do those things that He told us to do. We must feed the hungry, care for the single mothers, the homeless, the sick and anyone else in need. We must give generously to those who have less than we do. We must shine the light of God on everyone we meet and tell them of our love for Jesus. We must not rest, we must not tire; we must press on and forward at all times. This is how each of us must live, not just a few, not just some. No one has an excuse to simply profess Jesus with their lips and then lead a life of leisure. We are called to service and to action. There are no exceptions.

Making the Most of Your Time

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Did you ever have one of those weeks where despite your best intentions, you ended up getting nothing done? I call these “lost weeks” and nothing can be more maddening for a driven, goal-oriented person like me. I suspect you too have had weeks that just passed you by without making any forward progress. The problem is that our best intentions do no not equal our best efforts. We can intend to do something all we want, but until we put effort behind the intention, then we have no action. Intention without effort is dead; it’s the same with our faith.

While letting time pass without reaching our goals or making forward progress can indeed be maddening, this same behavior is devastating to our spiritual walk. We are told in Ephesians 5:15-16 to make “the most of the time because the days are evil.” If we are not making the most of our time each day, we are allowing Satan to gain a greater foothold on our world. As we are commissioned to bring the kingdom of God to reality on earth, beating back the advances of the devil is one of our primary objectives. It’s not good enough to show up on Sundays to praise and worship with fellow believers; it’s not good enough to write a few checks in support of various ministries each month; and it’s certainly not good enough to give lip service to our commitment to Jesus Christ. Making the most of the time we have is not something we can do passively or half-heartedly. How many days do we let go by as we wallow in self-pity or simple laziness? How many days have passed since you have actively engaged in being the hands and feet of Jesus? None of us have any guarantee of living one more second on this planet. Every one of us faces the stark reality that today may be our last day on earth. This is urgent! The time to serve Christ is now because there may not be any other time available to do so. We must make the most of the time, and that time is right now!

A follower of Jesus cannot afford to have “lost weeks”. The truth is, if we are fully living our calling, we cannot even afford to have “lost minutes”. Every breath is precious to carrying out the mission of Jesus Christ. There is not a moment that He is not with you, but how many moments do we spend unaware of his presence and unconcerned or uncommitted to His work? We must be intentional people, deliberately measuring our words and our steps in order to put forth our best effort for Him regardless of our circumstances. We are the called and we are His chosen. We have committed our lives to being followers of Jesus Christ, to go wherever He might lead, and to do whatever He might have us to do. Becoming a follower of Jesus is optional; once committed, however, carrying out His mission is required.

Are you making the most of every second of every minute of every hour of your life? Do you breathe in the love of God and exhale His passion to the world around you? Are you committed to giving all that you have and all that you are to help bring about His Kingdom here on earth? This isn’t a game or a social club. Following Jesus isn’t something you do because it’s hip or cool. To be a true follower of Christ is treacherous, dirty, smelly and difficult work; it is not for the squeamish or the faint of heart. Are you ready to take up the cross of Christ and follow Him wherever He may go? Are you ready to live for Him, to die to all you have ever known, and to spend the rest of your life being the hands and feet of Jesus to a dark and lonely world? Begin today because there may not be a tomorrow for you. Love God, love people, and serve Jesus. Stay focused on His mission, making the most of the time you have.