Even If i Walk Alone

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

mission

The End of Indecision

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For too long we have gone back and forth about our commitment to Christ. One day we are fired up and nothing can deter us; the next we are self-absorbed, depressed and wondering if it’s all worth it. The inconsistency is killing our effectiveness and causing our lives to spoil. A mixture of hot and cold produces a lukewarm life, a life that Jesus said He will vomit out (Revelation 3:16). I believe I speak for all of us when I say that this is not the person I wish to be; I do not want to live a life so repulsive to Christ that He vomits it out. It’s time to decide, once and for all, where we will place our loyalties. Will we reach for all this life has to offer or will we place everything we have at the feet of the one who gave His life for us?

When we first committed our lives to Jesus we gave no thought to turning back. We understood we were new creations and therefore had been transformed to live differently. Over time we lose our enthusiasm; we allow our clean hearts to be polluted by the sin around us when we drink a little in. It’s not that we intend to turn away; we simply get lazy and let down our guard. We lose sight of the fact that there is a very real, very powerful battle waging for our soul. As physical beings we cannot see the battle, but our spiritual core can feel it. When we tune into the fray, we become aware of the ferocity and we determine anew to stand fast. Too often we live our lives tuned out, concerned only with the tactile realities of the here and now. We get caught up pursuing the American dream, and we succumb to the bombardment of messages from the media. We allow ourselves to drink in the dirty water.

The only way to remain vigilant is to consistently flush our souls with the pure living water of Christ. If we are not spending consistent time in prayer and studying His Word, we will become tainted and our effectiveness will be severely muted. I want my life to shout the love of Christ; I want to shake the world with His love and His message. The only way to accomplish these goals is to remain on purpose and on mission, all the time. An intentional, consistent walk is the only way that leads to victory. Remember the story of the tortoise and the hare? It wasn’t the brilliant bursts of the rabbit that won the race; he got lazy and caught up in his own selfish desires. No, it was the consistency and single-minded purpose of the tortoise that won the race. It is the same in our pursuit of Jesus. If we stay the course and keep our eyes focused on Him, we will accomplish what He has given us to do. Keeping our entire aim on His service while refusing to be distracted by the pleasures of this life will allow us to continue His mission and finish the race for His glory.

As long as we are given to a series of starts and stops, we will not be able to fulfill the purpose for which we were created. A lukewarm life will not get it done, and indeed may end with disastrous consequences. I don’t know how you read it, but being vomited out does not exactly sound like a grand welcoming into Heaven. Jesus calls us to total commitment, and that is exactly what we promised Him when we first surrendered our lives. We promised total devotion; we said that He would be our Lord and we would be His servant. This is not a casual vow; nothing could be more serious. Are we sincere or not? Do we love Him or are we just trying things out? It’s time to put away our indecision and once and for all give the rest of our lives to Christ and Christ alone. As Michael Tait sings in a recent Newsboys song, “I’m giving Him the best of/ Everything that’s left of/ The life inside this man/ I’ve been born again!” Let’s join in that pledge. Let’s give Jesus all we have for the rest of our lives. From this point forward our decision is clear and our path is focused. Let’s pledge to follow Jesus wherever that may lead. No more wavering, no more turning back.

What Now?

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What if you’ve fully surrendered your life to Christ and don’t know what to do next? It’s not as if life comes with neon directional arrows so you know which way to turn at any given moment. You’re ready to sacrifice everything for Christ and do whatever He asks; you simply aren’t certain what He’s asking. What about the talents He’s given you; is it okay to use them for endeavors that aren’t exactly in line with promoting His kingdom? Where do you draw the line? I’ve been battling many of these same issues recently, and I suspect I am not alone. These are weighty questions, and I most assuredly do not have all the answers; but I will share with you what I have been learning in hopes it may be of some help to you.

As followers of Christ, everything we do should be for His honor, for His glory, and to further His Kingdom. We are the servants of Jesus; we are His slaves. When we committed ourselves to Christ we relinquished all claim on our lives; we are His and He is ours. The life we lead for Him cannot be separated from the life we live for ourselves; they are eternally intertwined. No longer is there any concept of things we do for Him and things we do for our self. When determining what we should do with the gifts He has given to us, there is no choice other than to use them for His glory. If you are a singer, you must sing for Him; if you are a teacher, you must teach others about Him; if a craftsmen, use your creations to further His kingdom.

I realize these can seem like vague generalities, and it is most helpful to have concrete examples. Since I don’t know your situation or your gifts, I will attempt to articulate what this looks like in my own life. I have been given the ability to write, and writing in almost any genre comes easily for me. I now realize that all that matters is that I use this gift for Jesus. In my pursuit of earning a living as a full-time writer, I have recently had opportunities to go down paths that held the possibilities of cutting significant time from that goal. I could write for various interests and develop copy to sell the products of others. However, my overriding objective is to shake the world with the love of Jesus. These other opportunities would do nothing to show the love of Christ to my audience; they would simply enhance my own profile and marketability. I struggled with this decision for several days before coming to the conclusion that I must not pursue anything that will take additional time away from my definite chief aim of proclaiming the gospel of Jesus and encouraging others to live in total devotion to Him.

Living life solely for Christ will challenge our logic and alter our perception of things like possessions and economy. We may not obtain the comforts of this world, and we may never know financial security. The only thing we are guaranteed to acquire is increased persecution. The closer we get to Jesus, the more intense the attacks will become. It takes either a special kind of lunatic to pursue this life, or else it takes someone who is madly, deeply in love with Jesus Christ. I prefer to not place myself in the lunatic camp and instead endure whatever may come for the sake and privilege of loving and serving Jesus. I may not always be certain where the next step leads, but I do know that Jesus waits at the end of the road.

When I am not sure of what to do next, I fall back on the basic truths of being a follower of Christ. I am to pursue justice, feed the hungry and care for the poor and outcast. What can I do that will further that mission? This question brings clarity of purpose and helps refine our choices. I want to encourage others to give their lives fully to Jesus so that together we might impact the world and help bring about His kingdom here on earth. Are you struggling for direction or battling how best to use your gifts? Remember that everything you do must glorify God and further His mission. We are His slaves, and if we are sincere in our commitment, we will love every minute of it. Nothing fulfills a life like doing the work of Christ.

Risk vs. Reward

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No matter how you stack it up, life is a never ending adventure. Each day we have the opportunity to rewrite the script, to change our course and to seek new challenges. In the free nations of our world, we have the privilege of achieving high levels of success and acquiring great wealth. We can do all of these things without giving much thought to the spiritual side of life; so we risk squandering the most incredible opportunity of all, the chance to know God personally, to enjoy an intimate relationship with the one who created us. Many are afraid that if they give their lives to Christ that they will have to give up too much of what they have worked to obtain. They are afraid they will be required to sacrifice their lifestyle, their friends and their activities. The price simply seems too high.

What if we risked it all? What if we determined to live our lives full throttle for Jesus Christ? If we threw ourselves into the teeth of life with reckless abandon and didn’t care what we might lose, how then might we impact the world? Two thousand years ago, one man and twelve of his followers literally altered the course of human history forever. One man’s influence has permeated through every generation that has come after Him. A small handful of ordinary souls who devoted their lives to following Him spread His message throughout the world and thereby continued the mission to which they had been called. They risked everything; they suffered persecution, torture and even death. All this they deemed worth the cost because they knew if they endured for God’s sake, He would reward them with eternal rest and peace in His kingdom. They were willing to lose everything they had achieved and acquired for the sake of continuing the mission of Jesus Christ. They risked it all and lost everything of temporal value, yet they gained everything that could be gained; they got Jesus.

If the price still seems too high for you, that’s okay; you don’t have to pay it. You don’t have to risk everything and follow Jesus. You can continue life as you know it, acquiring more and achieving greater and greater success. You can pile up cash, purchase expensive toys and take exotic vacations. You can absolutely live your life totally devoid of anything to do with Jesus and thereby not risk losing everything you now possess. That’s great news, right? Here’s the problem. By refusing to risk it all, you are guaranteed to lose everything. This truth is spelled out very plainly in Scripture (Matthew 16:24, 25). If you are not willing to risk it all, you are assured of losing everything. You can gain all that this world has to offer and in the end it will be taken from you, you’ll be stripped naked, and you will be left alone. You will suffer an eternity that is absent of God, absent of love, and absent of redemption. You will lose it all because you were unwilling to risk everything for the person and cause of Jesus Christ. This is reality, and it is your future if you continue down the path the world chooses. What will you decide?

The risk of following Jesus is nothing compared to the certainty of not following. We can risk it all and thereby gain everything. Or, we can play it safe and lose it all. These are the two choices that we have in life, there is nothing else. You can’t risk a little and hope to gain a little in return, perhaps just enough to guarantee your comfort. It simply doesn’t work this way. Jesus said that if you are not for Him then you are against Him (Matthew 12:30). What is the greater risk, to give your life to Christ or to stand in opposition to Him? I assure you if you oppose the God of the universe, you will lose every time. It’s a no win situation, so why would you even want to go there? You can’t keep putting off your choice, because today may be the last day that you have the opportunity to choose. None of us has any guarantee of tomorrow (James 4:14). You must make the choice today, and it affects more than the rest of your life; it affects your eternity. Again I ask, what will you decide? Will you play it safe and hope for the best, and by doing so lose everything you have and all hope for salvation? Or will you risk it all, throwing yourself with abandon into the mission of Christ, no matter the cost, and gain life? The price is great and the risk is heavy, but the reward is beyond measure.

Together We Fight

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What if we don’t change? What if despite all of our resources and knowledge we turn a deaf ear and a blind eye to the world around us? What if our desire to live for Christ never moves beyond just that… a desire? Will it even matter? Won’t someone else simply pick up my slack? It seems as if we live our lives believing that our contribution will not be missed if we skip it. I’ve been listening to David Platt talk about unreached people groups recently, and statistics show that over two billion people still have never heard about Jesus. That’s an incredible number. Nearly one-third of the world’s population is yet to be exposed to the truth and love of Jesus. By many estimates, that’s about the same number of people who profess to be Christians in the world. So, using easy math, if each one of us would simply go tell one of these folks about Jesus, we could cover the world. That would work, except most of us will never follow Christ’s command to go into all nations teaching others about Him. Most of us won’t even talk about Jesus in our own neighborhood. Suddenly two billion people are a staggering challenge, because most of us will not do our part.

Why this apathy? As followers of Christ we know we will one day have to answer to God concerning our actions here on earth. We know we will have to give an account for the things we did and did not do. It is my horrifying suspicion that what we didn’t do will far outweigh the things we did do. How can we ignore the commands of Christ as if they were irrelevant to our salvation? We are saved by the grace of God to do good works for Him (Ephesians 2:8-10). We are not saved by grace to sit around and watch the world die around us. We are called and chosen to take the message of Christ to all people. We are called and chosen to fight injustice and care for everyone in need. In short, we are called and chosen to live our lives the same way that Jesus lived His. Jesus was not passive in His mission. He actively pursued the fulfillment of His purpose.

Where did we come to believe that following Jesus meant praying a simple prayer and going to church on Sunday’s? Where is the scriptural reference for this kind of life? Yet this is what we have been taught and indeed continue to be taught in a great many churches throughout our country. We speak more of building campaigns and budgets than we do of ministering to the poor. We are taught the importance of regular church attendance and small group involvement, but rarely do we hear teachings on the command of Jesus to go out into the entire world. We’ll determine to perhaps take our cities for God but taking God outside of our city is a job for someone else. When did the church stop preaching the Bible? It frustrates and infuriates me, especially as I realize I have spent far too much of my own life buying into this very teaching. Satan delights in blinding us from the truth, all the while convincing us of our righteousness and spirituality. We have a mission and we have been neglecting it for too long. We need to get busy.

Will you join me? Will you come out of the safe confines of the churches to reach out to those who have never heard the name of Christ? We must refocus our gaze on the mission that has been set before us. We were created for a purpose and that purpose is to flood the world with the love of Jesus. Time is running out for all of us and we have none left to spare. Its fight or flight, and I will not turn my back on the one who gave His life for me. I will not turn my back on those who are dying without the knowledge and love of Christ. I will press forward and I am desperate for your help and talents along the way. We desperately need each other, and together in His strength, we will change our world for His glory.

Will You Give Up Your Life?

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A few days ago Al Qaeda terrorists stormed a church in Iraq and held hostage those who were gathered there. An attempt to free them by the police turned deadly and as I write this the number of those killed is fifty-two. Many more were injured and may not survive. I lead with this to remind us all that while this blog deals with the spiritual side of things, there is a very real physical element to our decision to follow Jesus. While spiritual warfare rages around us unseen, the implications of that very battle are manifested in human lives at every moment. It is said here often: following Jesus is difficult and not for the faint of heart; what perhaps isn’t said enough is that following Jesus can be deadly.

We should expect nothing less, for when we decide to follow in the footsteps of Christ we know where they eventually lead. Jesus steadfastly and purposefully walked to His own death on a cross. I hope you have not been deceived into believing that following Jesus would lead to a life of prosperity, health and the comforts of all this world has to offer. Sorry, but that’s not in the program. Jesus said that we must give up everything for His sake and that we must be willing to lay down our lives for Him, just as he did for us. He told us we would have no place to call home here on earth, and that we would face trial and persecution. None of this should come as a surprise or a shock. Yet every day Christians live in oblivious bliss, confident in their confession of faith, while blindly ignoring what it means to follow Jesus.

It is sobering to hear of the slaughter and torture of our Christian brothers and sisters. We become pensive and introspective. But for those of us who are able to do something about the injustice, we must do more that reflect; we must act. If you live in the West, you are blessed beyond all measure. We are richer than any people that have come before us. We have the ways and we have the means to come to the aid of our brothers and sisters in need. We have the technology and the know-how to proclaim the gospel to lands that forbid us to do so. We have been given so much and therefore much is required of us. We have grown comfortable and lazy in our homes and cities. We have lost the stomach to fight for the orphans, the windows and for justice. Now is the time to must rise up and fight for the name of Jesus. We must take a stand and proclaim His love and His message to all peoples, regardless of the cost to our own lives. If we are not willing to forsake everything, to lose our very lives, then how dare we call ourselves followers of Christ?

These are not easy words, but they also are not new. Look again at what Jesus told us to do. We are to go into all the world to teach others about Him. Yet two thousand years after He gave this command, a third of the world still has never heard His name or experienced His love. What excuse do we have for this? We are not doing enough. Christians around the world are giving their lives for the sake of continuing His mission, and we in the West are content to build buildings and insulate ourselves from all that is happening around us. God forgive us.

What are we to do? Pray diligently and confess our apathy. Weep before God, acknowledge our weakness and beg for the courage to run the race He has set before us. We travel a road that leads to physical death but spiritual life. We must not waver; the mission is too important. Too many have not heard, and it is up to us to tell them; if not us, then who? If not now, then when? We who bear the blood of Jesus must not shy away from shedding our own blood for the sake of His kingdom. The responsibility is ours, and it is great. Together we must carry our cross into the world to continue the mission of Christ. We must not grow weary, because we cannot fail.