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I was humbled today as I read Luke 9:57-62 and was reminded of the cost of following Jesus:
57 As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go." 58 Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head." 59 He said to another man, "Follow me." But the man replied, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father." 60 Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God." 61 Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family." 62 Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God." NIV
The three encounters Luke records here all spoke a different truth into my life. Even when I willingly take the iniative to follow like the first man, I fall short in realizing the magnitude of the cost of becoming a true disciple of Christ. Jesus speaks of his own homelessness here, and beckons us to give up all the comforts of life to pursue his way.
With the second man's situation, I am reminded that even our most urgent priorities pale in comparisson to the urgency of the Kingdom. Not that burying one's father is unimportant, but we are shown that it is secondary; for essentialy if we fail to do it someone else will take care of it. However, the matters of the Kingdom will be left unattended unless we treat them with the urgency that Jesus demonstrated.
And lastly, I am really humbled by the third encounter, for it is the place I often find myself in; telling God I'm ready to go, but then making an excuse. The words of Christ are strong here, stating that those who fall prey to hesitation are not fit for service in God's Kingdom. Not fit, unworthy, useless.
Lord, forgive me for hesitating. Forgive me for living without urgency, for not considering the cost of belonging fully to you, for being useless. Help me deny myself, help me pick up my cross, and help me follow you today.
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pic of the day: 
1 comment:
Hey buddy,
Just wanted to let you know I'm blogging again, and reading again. Hope all is well with the wedding plans and everything. I got tuxes picked out this weekend. God bless.
Landon
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