Tag: follow

CROSSES

Christians around the world this week are celebrating special Holy Week services as they journey with Jesus in the final hours of His life on earth and victory over death. I find it the most beautiful and sacred time of the year, as Jesus’ death and His resurrection three days later are the pinnacles of our faith. Let’s take a few minutes to reflect on Jesus’ cross and the crosses we bear in this life too.

Think about Jesus’ life. God sent Jesus to this earth to live in human form, so we can relate to Him even more.

Continue reading “CROSSES”

COME, FOLLOW ME

Can you imagine being one of Jesus’ first disciples and hearing Him say “Come, follow Me?”

Having Jesus, in the flesh, call you PERSONALLY to follow Him?
Can you imagine how special it must have been for those disciples whom Jesus looked deep into their eyes, piercing their soul too, and said, “Come, follow Me?”
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Photo credit by Sherman M. Leavitt under Creative Commons License (CC BY-NC-ND  2.0)
When Jesus called some of His first disciples, Jesus was like a  “stranger” calling them from afar, as they didn’t really know Jesus personally.
For other disciples, some had heard about Jesus from a friend or relative so they were somewhat familiar with Jesus.
And, for some disciples, Jesus knew them personally when He called them.

Isn’t that just like us?

There are some of us that don’t know about Jesus but slowly we realize something is missing and we feel a beckoning from a stranger named Jesus.
 Some of us hear about Jesus from a friend or relative and we hear Jesus calling us to heed His call in our life.
And, some of us know about Jesus and then realize we need a personal relationship with Him.

Can you imagine leaving mother, brother, your job and even home to follow Jesus?  But, that is what He called those early disciples to do!

Many of them left what they were doing immediately to follow Jesus!  They trusted that Jesus was in charge of their lives and would provide for them no matter what.
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Even though Jesus is in heaven with God, His Father, and not here in the flesh with us, Jesus still calls each of us and says, “Come, follow Me!”
 
In what ways has Jesus called you to “Come, follow Me” recently or even a long time ago?
Is your personal call from Jesus to “Come, follow Me” the most important thing in your life?
Do you follow Jesus’ lead to “Come, follow Me” daily….Following where He leads you?
Have you had to leave some of your family, your job or home to follow Jesus’ call to “Come, follow Me?”
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Maybe you haven’t heard the Lord’s call that drastically in your life, but I think reflecting on Jesus’ calling His very first disciples shows us how to follow Jesus’ call in our lives too….

–To make Him number one in our lives

–To not put anything or anyone above Him in our lives

–To follow His call daily in our lives

–To make us dependent on Him alone to provide for us.

“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” At once they left their nets and followed Him.  –Matthew 4:19-20 (NIV)
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”  –John 10:27  (NIV)

FOLLOW YOUR HEART

Are you aware of that still, small voice deep inside of you that helps direct your path?  Do you try to listen to it and follow where it leads? The Holy Spirit is within us helping us to follow God’s leading.

I think it is important to follow your heart, that still, small voice, not necessarily what society thinks is right or correct. We might have to endure hardship because of our choices but that is better than going against where God is leading.

There was one major time in my life when after much prayer, and weighing pros & cons, I ended up following my heart rather than do what was expected. It was a difficult thing to do as I am not one to go against what is expected, but I had to follow my heart and trust God that it was the “right” decision for my life.

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Photo credit by pocketful of perspective under Creative Commons License (by-nc-nd/2.0)

Recently a conversation with a friend made me think about how I followed my heart in another life choice I made. The friend believes there was a choice in my past that was not the “correct” one.  The choice was a difficult one but one that I still stand by. In my heart, I feel it was the “right” decision for my life. Yes, it still had some repercussions but it was more important to follow God’s leading.

Can you think of some incidents in your life where you followed the Holy Spirit’s prompting? Try to be more aware of that small, still voice in your life and follow it. It is so worth the hardships you may endure for going against the norm.

Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness.”  –Hebrews 3:7-8