Even If i Walk Alone

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

I Peter

Times of Trouble

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In the darkest days, we must remember Jesus is good. He always seeks justice and love. When discouragement encroaches on our soul, He is our comfort. Our unchanging God is in control and we can know all things are working toward His sovereign plan and ultimate victory. We must not grow weary. Our battle is long and our journey difficult. But, oh, our righteous King is our ever-present help in times of trouble (Psalm 46:1-3).

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Don’t let the circumstances and events surrounding you consume your thoughts and dictate your mood. Turn your eyes to Jesus. See His beauty. Gaze on His glory. Bask in the warmth of His love. He is not panicked or taken off guard by the happenings in our world. We can rest in His unending provision and power.

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The End of Nominal Christianity

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As we watch the moral decline of Western society and the growing indifference or outright hostility toward followers of Jesus, one bright spot in all of this is the end of nominal Christianity. For years, many in the West have been Christ-followers in name only. These are people who like the idea of Jesus, but not the surrender of their lives to Him.

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They go to church every weekend and proudly profess their faith in Jesus, particularly when it is socially expedient. There is a certain panache to being able to claim the moral high ground by proclamation of one’s faith. But surrender their lifestyle to live according to the commands of Jesus and the Bible? Well, that always seems to fall into some sort of “gray area” for these so-called and nominal Christians.

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A Wasted Life

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Millions of people around the world are wasting their lives living for things that don’t matter while professing to be followers of Jesus Christ. It is the rare follower of Jesus I encounter, whose life looks radically different from everyone else. I know my life too often looks more like someone pursuing (and sometimes even living) the American dream than it does that of a radical follower of Jesus. A wasted life.

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Jesus calls us to live differently than our surrounding culture. When He was walking the earth, few things He did aligned with the social norms of His day. His life was radically different from those surrounding Him. Jesus wasn’t what anyone was expecting and everything they weren’t. We can talk about how different we are from others, but we find the proof in how we live.

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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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I Pledge Allegience

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“I pledge allegiance to…” How do you finish that sentence? We all pledge our allegiance to something or someone. Many are brought up being taught to pledge their allegiance to their nation. When I was younger, we said the pledge of allegiance to our country’s flag at the beginning of each school day. Now that we’re adults, we get to choose where and to whom we will pledge our allegiance. If you follow Jesus, the choice is simple.

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Jesus does not accept divided loyalty. He demands our whole heart, the entirety of our devotion because He knows it is impossible to serve two masters (Matthew 6:24). I am grateful for living in America. Despite what seems to be a never-ending erosion of our values and principles, I still think it’s the best place to live. But I pledge allegiance to Jesus and no one or nothing else.

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