Even If i Walk Alone

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

commitment

Are We Willing?

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We’ve heard countless stories of people praying for someone with cancer, which results in the doctors no longer being able to detect any cancer in the patient. Yet most of us also know firsthand what it’s like to pray that God would heal someone, only to see healing never come. Why does God choose to heal some but not others?

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In some countries, Christians face harassment, beatings, and imprisonment for following Christ, yet in others, they are free to worship the Lord however and whenever they choose. How is any of this fair? Perhaps we asking the wrong questions. Instead of asking, “Why”, I think the better question is, “Are we willing?” Are we willing to suffer both physical and emotional extremes for the sake of knowing Christ (Philippians 3:10-11)?

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Until My Dying Breath

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While praying this morning, I blurted out, “Lord, let me serve and glorify You until my dying breath.” This is without a doubt the deepest desire of my heart. At the same time, I am only too aware of how often I fail to live this way. There is no higher calling in life than to love and glorify the Lord. Each of us is called to this privilege, yet most of us will live lives far short of this.

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Instead of pursuing the greatest purpose, we settle for a life that is, at best, mediocre. All the treasures and wisdom of Heaven are at our disposal (Colossians 2:3; James 1:5; 2 Peter 1:3; Philippians 4:19), but we live as if we are ignorant paupers. Life with Jesus should be so much more (John 10:10), and it will be so much more if we surrender and commit everything to Him.

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Your Love of Christ

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In times of severe testing, what keeps you persevering for the faith? When life hands you one setback after another, how do you maintain hope? The obvious answer for believers is always, “Jesus”. But what about Jesus compels you to get knocked down over and over, then get up tomorrow to do it all again? What drives your desire to suffer in this life?

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There are a lot of very good answers to this question: “He commands us to obey Him” (John 14:15). “We know our calling is to suffer” (1 Peter 2:20-21). “A great reward awaits those who hold fast until the end” (Revelation 2:10). These are all true and good reasons to carry on. But none of these reasons will be strong enough to carry you when the pressure becomes extreme. The only thing that will sustain you in the toughest of times is your love of Christ.

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The Hardest Part

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From the research I’ve done on persecution, the hardest part is not the persecution itself, but the preparation before it begins. Standing firm in the face of pain or injustice is a small thing if one dedicates their life to living in full obedience and surrender to Christ (Philippians 1:27-28). The hard work comes before. The real difficulty is the lifetime of saying no to the pleasures and temptations of this world.

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There are countless stories of people persevering through hard times. But how many examples can you recount of people putting aside their dreams, passions, and desires so they can devote themselves to Christ? How many people are dying to themselves every day and picking up their cross (Luke 9:23)?

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Fear of Dying

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The fear of dying is one of the top two fears afflicting people. Some research states it is the most common fear, while other studies place it second behind public speaking. I couldn’t find any concrete numbers detailing what percentage of Christians fear death, but over the years, I have heard more than a few believers express a fear of dying.

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That’s a little hard for me to get my head around because true followers of Christ want nothing more than to spend eternity with Him. We can’t do that until we die. To my mind, it is irrational for someone who believes in the resurrection of Jesus to have any fear of dying. We might fear the circumstances that lead to our death, but dying itself should fill us with nothing but hope and joy (1 Corinthians 15:54-57; Philippians 1:21-23).

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