Beyond what others may and you cannot…

It’s true that as we follow Jesus, we will often feel alone. He will call us to hard things. He will require of us whole-hearted obedience. He will not allow us to do things which others seem to enjoy. If we truly want to follow Jesus we must understand that Others May, You Cannot.

However, let this be tempered with humility.

It is easy to think that we are the only ones called to run this hard race. It is easy to look around, feel alone, and immediately conclude that perhaps everyone else has called it quits. Or is way behind. Or that we are in some special race reserved for only a few. That may be true. But …

It could be there are just so far ahead that you cannot see them. (Smile.)

Or that they are running an entirely different race altogether.

You see, the truth is that God calls each of us to follow Him. What that looks like will vary with every single life. Some will be called to singleness. Some to serve a difficult spouse. Some to care for a child of special needs. Some will need to sell their home to give to the poor. Some will move to Africa. Some will plant a church. Some will stay in their church. Some will care for an aging parent. Some will move away from home. Some will scrub toilets. Some will  appear on TV.

Let us be careful that just as we do not rely on others to assure us that we are following God, we also must not assume that just because others are elsewhere, that they aren’t truly following God. 

We must, once and for all, quit taking our cues from the crowds. Their presence or their absence does not indicate the blessing or curse of God. We must, always and forever, take our cues from the Holy God. He alone can lead our course. He alone has the answer to every single dilemma we will ever face. When we silence all other noise, get on our knees, and listen intently for His still small voice, we will hear His will for our life. We will get to know the heart of God.

We will change.

It’s true, others may and you cannot. But let us temper this with an ever-increasing hunger for humility, which simply lets God deal with us and others as He sees fit.

When we are content with His dealings, whatever they may be, we have found joy. 

Thanks for reading.