"Come follow me" - Jesus
Here's to a quote that has changed the lives of many. Jesus had a lot of great one-liners! I think that this was one of His best. I was just talking to my friend in Colorado and we were talking about opening a business together...and having a lot of one line quotes from Jesus all over the room. We were laughing so hard thinking about it. But a little later I was reflecting on that one line that Jesus said to almost everyone He encountered and I just sat with those words for a while.
"Come, follow me" was a very simple invitation, He still extends the invitation out to us today! But what made people leave their nets and follow Him? What made two men leave their father in the boat and follow Him? What made a woman pour expensive oil on His feet and follow Him? What was it about Him? It said that Jesus was found "human in appearance" though He was God. So what made people follow Him? What makes people follow Him still? I think what it boils down to is this: People saw in Jesus something they wanted. Peace. There is something about following Jesus that brings peace!
We search for that peace in a lot of places. There is a lot going on in this world that says it can bring you peace but let's be real...can it? Can that massage really relieve stress? Well, maybe for a while...but those stress knots will come back. Can Dr. Phil really fix your relationship? I doubt it, maybe he can give you some common advice. Can Judge Judy bring you the justice that you so desperately are searching for so you can finally just be at peace with whatever it is that someone did to you? I can tell you now that the answer to all those questions is...well, maybe, but the result will not be a lasting one.
Following Jesus (and this may sound really corny) is the only way to gain the peace that we are searching for. I was anxious about a few things over the holidays...I couldn't figure out why my life was out of sorts...it bothered me and so I decided to take it to prayer...I walked into Adoration and immediately felt a sense of peace at just BEING in the presence of Jesus. This is what it came down to for me...I needed more of Jesus in my life. I needed to lay down my nets (all the extra work) and follow Him, I needed to offer all my material possessions (including my body which is only mine for a little while) to Him and let Him use me for whatever purpose He wanted. I needed to take that one liner that Jesus said "Come follow me" and (as Nike's one liner says) just do it! I needed to FOLLOW HIM...and everything else would be taken care of...Jesus promises life in ABUNDANCE! And we need that in a world that promises empty things and is full of darkness and uncertainties. We need to cling to the promise that when He said "come follow me" He would take care of us in every sense of the word, and bring PEACE! So my point is this...Jesus had some great one liners!
Follow Him!
"Come, follow me" was a very simple invitation, He still extends the invitation out to us today! But what made people leave their nets and follow Him? What made two men leave their father in the boat and follow Him? What made a woman pour expensive oil on His feet and follow Him? What was it about Him? It said that Jesus was found "human in appearance" though He was God. So what made people follow Him? What makes people follow Him still? I think what it boils down to is this: People saw in Jesus something they wanted. Peace. There is something about following Jesus that brings peace!
We search for that peace in a lot of places. There is a lot going on in this world that says it can bring you peace but let's be real...can it? Can that massage really relieve stress? Well, maybe for a while...but those stress knots will come back. Can Dr. Phil really fix your relationship? I doubt it, maybe he can give you some common advice. Can Judge Judy bring you the justice that you so desperately are searching for so you can finally just be at peace with whatever it is that someone did to you? I can tell you now that the answer to all those questions is...well, maybe, but the result will not be a lasting one.
Following Jesus (and this may sound really corny) is the only way to gain the peace that we are searching for. I was anxious about a few things over the holidays...I couldn't figure out why my life was out of sorts...it bothered me and so I decided to take it to prayer...I walked into Adoration and immediately felt a sense of peace at just BEING in the presence of Jesus. This is what it came down to for me...I needed more of Jesus in my life. I needed to lay down my nets (all the extra work) and follow Him, I needed to offer all my material possessions (including my body which is only mine for a little while) to Him and let Him use me for whatever purpose He wanted. I needed to take that one liner that Jesus said "Come follow me" and (as Nike's one liner says) just do it! I needed to FOLLOW HIM...and everything else would be taken care of...Jesus promises life in ABUNDANCE! And we need that in a world that promises empty things and is full of darkness and uncertainties. We need to cling to the promise that when He said "come follow me" He would take care of us in every sense of the word, and bring PEACE! So my point is this...Jesus had some great one liners!
Follow Him!
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