Don't Look Back

Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family." Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."  (Luke 9:61-62 NIV84)

Looking back can be a dangerous thing.

Have you ever been driving your car and spent too much time looking back over your shoulder?  (Sometimes it's the traffic around you, but more often than not its your kids in the back seat!)  I've had more than one near miss when I turn back around, only to find the car in front of me has come to a complete stop!  Thankfully, I've been able to stop each time before crunching into the back end of the car in front of me.  But it could have just as easily gone the other way.

God makes it very clear that following Him is an all or nothing proposition.  Jesus said when we follow him we don't know where we will live, but he will provide for our needs.  When we follow him, it needs to be more important than even our closest family.  When we follow him, we start now...and don't look back.  Lot's wife looked back and she turned into a pillar of salt.  Looking back can be a dangerous thing.

When I was younger, I remember singing a hymn that reminded me of this principle:

I have decided to follow Jesus

I have decided to follow Jesus

I have decided to follow Jesus

No turning back

No turning back

How about you?

Will you follow him?

Are you all in?

No turning back?

Follow Him First

He said to another man, "Follow me."
But he replied, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father." Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God." (Luke 9:59-60 NIV)


Many teachings of Jesus are challenging.  This one was probably one of the most challenging for me over the years.


Family has always been important to me.  I was one of the rare minority who actually enjoyed a good relationship with my parents.  I liked spending time with them.  When we lived in the same city, Traci and I would spend time with both sets of parents almost every weekend.  We would eat together, play cards together, vacation together, and even remodel old houses together.  Family is important.  Parents, for us, are a blessing.


It was difficult, then, to read passages like this.  Essentially, the man speaking to Jesus is saying, "I will follow you when I don't have parents to care for.  They need to come first."  Jesus replies, "No, I come first."


So, what should I do?  Drop my parents and walk away from them?  No.  That's not what he's saying at all.


Like so many other areas of life, Jesus is simply telling us the priority system we need to have in place.  Follow Jesus first.  When you do, you will obey your parents when you are young and honor them when you are older.  Why?  Because God said so.  


What if my parents tell me to do something God tells us not to do?  Simple.  Follow Him first.  People are imperfect.  God is not.  


When any person asks us to do something that God tells us not to do, God wins.  By the way, so do we and the people around us.  By following Him first, our co-workers, our friends, our family, and even our parents will get to see just how good His design is for our lives.  Maybe...just maybe...they will want to follow Him, too.


What about you?  Do you follow Him first?  Are you "all in?"

Wherever You Go

As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go." Jesus replied, "Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head."  (Luke 9:57-58 NIV)

Have you ever made the commitment to follow God no matter what in the "heat of the moment."  Maybe you were sick, or dying, or someone close to you was quite ill.  Perhaps it was about something you really wanted...money, security, safety, or...love.  You asked God.  You told Him if He would just give you this one thing that you would do anything He wanted and go anywhere He tells you to go.

Maybe it wasn't as blatantly self-serving as all that.  Perhaps you were convicted by a God-pointing song on the radio or in a church service.  Maybe you were listening to a sermon or reading His Word and it seemed like every word sung or spoken was pointed directly at you.  You decided.  I'm going to give my life to God.  Jesus is going to be the Lord of my life.  I will follow you wherever you take me!

I used to think that the worst possible scenario was God sending me to some far-off land where I don't know the culture, people, or language.  I had places I never wanted Him to take me and people I was sure He hadn't called me to serve.  I wanted to follow Him, but only as far as I wanted to go.

Over the years, I've found out that peace in following Him doesn't come by holding on to boundaries where I will allow Him to take me.  I only find peace when I let go of all boundaries and let Him take me where He wants.  When I do that, I put my complete trust in Him...and He never lets me down.

Think about this for a minute.  Do you ever really know where your next meal is going to come from?  Do you know where you are going to live?  Do you really know what your tomorrow will bring?  Earthquakes, terrorist attacks, economic downturns, and health problems can remove our "security" in a heartbeat.  How can we really rest secure?  Trust God.  He is the rock we can stand on when everything else fades away.  But it doesn't work if you're only half-in.  Both feet need to be on the rock.

How about you?  Are you all in?  Do you trust Him?  Are you ready to follow Him wherever He goes?