Running After You

"As Jesus was walking along, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at his tax collector's booth. 'Follow Me and be My disciple," Jesus said to Him. So Matthew got up and followed Him." - Matthew 9:9


If you're out on a hiking trail, what would you rather have - a guide or directions? Before you answer, let me explain the difference.

First, directions. They have to be created by someone who's been there before. They can tell you which way to turn whenever you have a choice to make. They can tell you the major landmarks and probably the places where you'll be likely to take a wrong turn.

Now, a guide. A guide has been on the trail many times before. He knows every little thing about it. He can tell you where every stone is that you might trip over. He can pull the tree branches aside so they don't hit you in the face. He can show you all the beautiful things along the side of the path. When you come to a fork in the road or an intersection, you don't have to stop and figure out which way the map or directions tell you to go, because the guide is there to lead you.

Now you can decide. Which would you rather have? A guide or directions?

Jesus asks us to follow Him. He doesn't want us to just ask Him how to get somewhere. He wants us to follow Him there. He wants to be our guide.

That's something He's been teaching me about - what it means to follow Him. One thing about following Him, is that I have to stay close to Him. Which takes a lot of learning.

Think about your closest friends. You probably know them pretty well. Right? You're so close to them that you know their favorite movie, their favorite music, their favorite place to eat. You know what they dislike. You know what they like to do. And it's not difficult to think the way they would in any given situation. When they ask you to do something for them, you probably don't think twice about it. And you got to that point by talking with them and spending time with them.

It's the same way with God. You get close to Him by being with Him and talking with Him. Eventually you can start to understand the way He thinks. Even if it's not the way you think on your own, you can still choose to see things the way He does. You can understand why He sees them that way. And it makes you happy to see them His way and do things the way He wants them done.

As you get closer to Him, it becomes easier to follow Him. You know Him better, so it's easier to trust Him. You'll be close enough to see the stumbling blocks He points out and avoid them. You'll be close enough to see where He tells you to side step a hole. You'll be able to see and appreciate the small beauties in your life that He points out. You'll even be close enough to see where He wants you to go at those decision-making points. Sure, you'll still have to listen when He tells you where to go, but you won't have to wait as long because you'll hear more quickly.

That's what it means to be a follower of Christ, to let Him be your guide. It means being close to Him, doing what He says to do when He says to do it, without thinking about the alternatives. It means enjoying your life, just because He's a part of it.

When you choose to follow Him, it makes a difference. When Matthew chose to follow Him, he lost his reputation as a "sinner" and left the legacy of a disciple, one of the members of the original church. For me, so far, it's meant discovering how to have a closer relationship with my true Best Friend and how to trust Him more.

What difference will it make in your life when you choose to follow Him?

Teach Me

Ever had one of those tests you had to study for for a really long time? One where it seemed like no matter how much you understood, you still couldn't get it all. Every time you understood something else, you realized there was more you needed to understand that you hadn't realized you needed to know before.

I am realizing that I have so much to learn. God is teaching me stuff left and right. Every time I talk to Him. Every time I step into a church service or something else of that sort. Every time I talk with the friends who push me closer to Jesus. He teaches me something new. Or at the very least helps me understand something that isn't really so new.

Right now, there is a position God wants me to be in. A place where He wants me to be. And I know where that spot is.

There's only one problem. Up until the last week or so, I was trying to learn how to get to that point so I could earn the rewards from it. It's like studying to get an A on a test.

The thing is, getting an A on a test isn't the point of studying. The point of studying is to learn. When it comes to my relationship with God the rewards, the things I want to know, are not the point of where He wants me to be. He wants me to get to that point so that I am closer to Him. Closer to everything He has for me.

So right now, I'm at that point of realizing that everything He taught me about getting to that point isn't just for that. It's about putting those things into practice and being right where He wants me. The more I learn about that, the more I realize that I have a lot left to learn. For instance, I have to learn how to put those things into practice. I have to learn how to make them real in my life.

But as I continue getting closer to Him, He'll get me where I need to be. Sure, there will still be work to do. There will still be more things to learn, but I'll be where I need to be for that moment in time. And eventually He'll give me the things I originally thought were my rewards.

For now though, I'm just going to focus on the point of studying. I'm going to learn what He has to teach me and put it into practice. At the same time, I'll know that I'll get my A+ whenever He is ready to give it to me.

Upon the Rock

You're standing in front of a friend. Your back is to him. He holds out his arms and says, "Trust me." I can trust him. He's never let me down before, you think. So you start to fall backward, not trying to catch yourself.

There's just one thing you didn't count on. Your friend isn't quite as strong as you thought. He's there to catch you. And he does. But he can't hold you up. You still land on the floor. Not hard, and not flat on your back. But it still hurts, because you trusted him not to let you fall.

Now, I want to ask you a question. Who is it that you are trusting to take care of you? Most people you could put your trust in can end up letting you down. Just like the friend in this trust fall scenario. However, there is someone you can trust to always catch you. Even when it seems impossible. Maybe this video clip will give you an idea of what I mean.

Trust has come up a lot recently in my talks with God. It hasn't just been trusting His direction, trusting His plan or even trusting His promises. I think He knows I understand that. (Yes, I could still use some work on them, but I do at least understand them.) What He's working on has been putting all my trust in Him.

He wants me to trust HIM to catch me. Not anyone else. Only Him.

It's difficult. First of all, even though I know He's with me and He's trustworthy, I still can't see Him. I can't audibly hear His voice. And sometimes, that makes things hard. Then there's the real problem.

God has given me some great friends. I really appreciate them, and I thank Him for them daily (or at least I try to remember to do so daily). I know I can trust them, and I know they Love me. I just take that trust a little bit too far sometimes.

The friends God has given me are great. He put them in my life to help me, encourage me, support me, pray for me, teach me. And I could get that list to go on for a while. But they're not perfect. They're going to mess up. Which I can understand. I get that. When it happens, it's not hard to forgive them.

What gets me is change. I do not like change. At all. I hate it. If the friends I have right now could be with me for the rest of my life, I would be perfectly fine with that. But I know they can't be. God wants every one of us to grow. He has places He wants us to go and things He wants us to do. And that means they can't always be with me.

God doesn't change though. He doesn't change, and He doesn't leave. That's why He wants me to trust Him. He wants all of my security to be Him. But He gives me a choice.

He actually makes it pretty clear in Matthew 7 which choice we should make too. He tells of a wise man who builds His house on God and His Word. When times get tough and things start moving, the house stands, because the foundation isn't going anywhere. Then He tells us about a foolish man. The fool builds His house on sand, things that move and fall away. When times get tough, the house falls apart because it's not built on the right things.

About a week ago, God made it very clear that the choice was up to me. I wanted Him to tell me how He was that firm footing, that solid foundation. That's not at all what He told me. Because I already know. He made it very clear that the choice was up to me. I could choose to build my security on Him or I could choose to leave it where it was. It was a very hard choice. I'm still working on it. Every day. But I took the first step toward being secure in Him.

It's changing things, but in a good way. I still get to enjoy my friends and the time I have with them right now. I also get to learn to trust God with those friendships. I have the chance to obey God every single day (not always enjoyable in the moment, but always pays off). Most importantly, I get to build my security on a solid foundation that I don't have to worry about it crumbling underneath me.

That's the best part. When your security is in God, your future is stable. You don't have to worry about how you'll hold things together when something else changes. All you have to do is trust Him and let Him take care of it. All while you enjoy the present.

That freedom is why He wants you to build your house on Him. So do it.