Even If i Walk Alone

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

priorities

Your Last Day

by

Imagine that an angel appeared to you when you woke this morning.  Imagine he told you that your life would be over at midnight, and then vanished.  What would your response be?  How would you order your day?  There would be no time for any major plans, no time for that fantastic cruise to the Bahamas or to climb Mt. Everest.  With only 18 hours or less to complete your life on earth, what would be your plan?

While everyone’s actions would be different, to be sure, I believe there are many things we would all agree we would not do.  I would not spend time in any trivial conversation, just to pass the time.  I would not spend my last hours sitting and dwelling on my failures and regrets.  I would not be afraid to tell someone that I loved them, or to introduce myself to someone I always found intimidating in any way.  I would not waste a moment bickering with friends or family over inconsequential activities, or fretting about any political speeches or sitting in front of the television.  I would not worry if the house was clean or the car was washed.

What I would want to do would be to spend every possible moment with those I love.  I would want to encourage everyone I met in hopes of leaving some sort of legacy behind.  I would certainly not be afraid to speak my mind, to tell the truth regardless of the circumstance or consequence.  I would spend much of my day in prayer, preparing myself for the next stage in my life.  I would ask God to show me what I needed to accomplish on this day, to show me those I needed to speak to, and those I needed to forgive.

As I look back over my list, I am struck by the fact that the way I would live my last day on earth is the way I should be living every day on earth.  Why are we so afraid to live this way, to live out loud for Christ?  Instead we try and live quietly, under the radar, and ultimately in insignificance.  I don’t want to be quiet; I don’t want to be insignificant; I want to live loudly.  I want to live each day as if I knew it were my last.  Join me in making a joyful noise every day we live.

What If?

by

What if this week were different? What if we approached tomorrow in a brand new way? What if we got so excited about doing life the way we are called to do it that we made a radical change in the way we lived? What if everything we did was done in honor of God? What if, before we go to bed tonight, we dedicated the rest of this week to Jesus? What if we didn’t stop at just words, what if we really meant it?

What if we rejected our pride and started actively seeking ways to serve others? What if we determined to love – truly love – everyone with whom we come into contact? What if we, once and for all, surrendered those things we have kept back from God? What if we stopped worrying if we had the latest electronic gadgets or the biggest TV? What if we stopped caring what kind of car we drive?

What if we skipped our own lunch and used the money to buy lunch for someone else instead? What if we took some time to speak to the homeless? What if we spared an hour to listen to someone who was hurting? What if we treated our families with the same courtesy and respect that we treat those outside of our inner circle?

What if we started living like Jesus was truly alive within us? What if we decided – right now – to set the world ablaze with the love of Christ? What if we just let go and let Him flow through us? What if we stopped being afraid and started trusting Him like we say we do? What if we started living as if nothing mattered more than pleasing Jesus?

What if this all weren’t just wishful thinking? What if we stopped asking all these questions and started to be the answers instead? What if?

What Holds You Back? Part II

by

In my last post I posed the question, “What holds you back from serving Christ the way you want to, from serving Him the way you know you should?” I offered the two reasons why I am held back. Today I will look at the second reason, which is selfishness.

I’m sure we can all agree that selfishness is never pretty. It’s like a cancer that infects our soul and spreads rapidly. We want to hold onto things, whether those things are physical objects, time or ideals. To be a follower of Christ requires that we have no “stuff” of our own. If we will call Him Lord, everything we have belongs to Jesus.

Time is a big one for me; I often would rather do my own thing (or nothing at all) as opposed to serving others, praying or studying the Bible. Any of those things can be draining when done without the proper attitude. Doing those things with a humble heart of love, however, is actually incredibly invigorating. The interesting dichotomy is that if these things are so invigorating and fill us with such life, why are we so hesitant to engage in such activities?

The common thread running between the things we should be doing is that we are doing them with another in mind. That provides much less instant gratification than just doing things for ourselves. These days we are all about the instant gratification. Information can be had with a just a couple of keystrokes, advertisements come at us a mile a minute and the opportunities for entertainment are absolutely mind-numbing. It’s simply easier and more pleasurable in the short term to serve ourselves rather than others.

We must not lose sight of who we are and more importantly, whose we are. For we who swear our allegiance to Jesus, there is no turning back. Our lives will never be the same. We will never again be about instant and short term pleasures. Instead we will bask in the long term tranquility of serving our Lord. May we never lose focus of our calling; love God, love others. It’s simple, eternally gratifying and absolutely selfless.

What Holds You Back? Part I

by

What holds you back from serving Christ the way you want to, from serving Him the way you know you should? Life has a way of throwing multiple obstacles in our path as we endeavor to live like Jesus. I would say satan throws these obstacles into our path, but I believe many of the obstacles are of our own creation. I previously wrote about the dangers of allowing ourselves to become too busy. Satan does not make us too busy – we do. Some of the things we fill our life with might indeed come from a subtle, evil place, but it is we who choose to indulge in such activity. I think it is important that we take full responsibility for not leading the life Christ instructs us to live.

For me, the things that hold me back can be broken down into three universal categories: time, money and selfishness. The encouraging part about this is that we can easily improve in each of these areas; there is no magic or rocket science required. Time and money are forever intertwined; we have to work to earn money to live, and that work takes time. As I have lamented in previous posts, I give away the best ten hours of my day to a job that does nothing to further the kingdom of God. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average American spends 36% of their waking hours on the job (http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090621/BUSINESS/906210317/1003/BUSINESS). It makes me realize how much better the New Testament model of the Church was, where everyone came together and shared their possessions for the good of the community. In our modern age, there is little community and even less pooling of resources. Instead, each of us soldier on alone; some earn more, some earn less, but all earn for self. While we give – sometimes even generously – to various ministries around the world, we miss the point and joy of communal living. Pooling our resources would mean more time for everyone to be doing Kingdom work. I think what Shane Claiborne is doing with the “Simple Way” community in Philadelphia is amazing (http://www.thesimpleway.org/index2.html). We would do well to follow suit.

If work is holding you back from fully serving Christ, perhaps it’s time to find another job. I know this is not the best economic climate to be seeking employment, but perhaps you at least need to try. We cling to our jobs and our paychecks as if they are the most important thing in the world. I don’t know about your Bible, but mine calls that idolatry. How many of us are guilty of making an idol out of our job? If work is interfering with you being able to serve God effectively and fully, then the job needs to go; you need to find a way to make money that is more conducive to fulfilling your call to serve Christ. That call is simple: love God to the very depths of your soul, and love your neighbors (that’s everyone who’s not you!) in the same way.

Help those in need; care for the single mom’s in your community – they are the widows of our generation and they need someone to come along side of them with the love of Christ. Care for the outcasts in our society, for they are the orphans of our time; they are alone, homeless and desperate for love. James (Jesus’ brother) told us that doing these things is what true religion looks like (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=66&chapter=1&verse=27&version=77&context=verse). What’s holding you back from loving others in this way? What holds you back from giving your entire life to the service of Jesus? How have we gotten so off mission in our modern culture? We claim to be followers of Christ, but our lives look nothing like His. Determine what holds you back and eradicate it from your life. Whatever it is, cut it out, stop doing it immediately. Replace that time with time spent in prayer, study and loving others. This is the key to happiness; this is the life Christ calls us to live.

Too Busy?

by

I read an article the other day that was talking about the new phenomenon of “funemployment” (http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009906070348). The article described the “funemployed” as people who had lost their jobs, but instead of getting depressed are finding immense joy in their newly found freedom. They are rediscovering balance in their lives, realizing there is more to life than work. They are realizing that they had allowed work to dictate the priorities in their lives. I think there is a great lesson to learn here.

For those of us who profess to follow Christ, who or what are we allowing to dictate our priorities? To follow Christ is to give all. That pretty well settles the question of priorities. What should be our number one priority? Our number one priority should be, must be, to follow Christ and to do so by serving others. Is that our number one priority today? If not, what have we allowed to move into first place? Are we too busy at work? Do we have too many balls in the air; are we wearing too many hats? Do we have too many social commitments, regardless of how noble those may be? Worst of all, would we simply rather be doing something else?

The Christian life is not for those lacking discipline. Don’t forget, Christ’s followers were called disciples, not merely people with a passing interest. To follow Christ requires self-discipline, dedication and a passion of the pursuit. This isn’t a game, not something we can do half-heartedly. If we are to follow Christ, we must go all in. If Christ isn’t our first thought in every situation, if He isn’t our motivation in every action, then our priorities are wrong.

We must never allow ourselves to be too busy to follow Christ. We must never find ourselves in the situation where we are trying to make time for Christ. Christ comes first; everything else must fit in the time remaining, or it must be cast aside. Don’t wait for something dramatic to happen in your life to make you realize you’ve allowed yourself to become too busy. Renew your commitment today to put Christ first in all things.