Its Never Been About Me - Gal 2:20

In our Home Friendship Group last week we talked about being a disciple of Christ. And as the facilitator observed even though one might think that the questions related to the topic ( A Nooma video called Dust by Pastor Rob Bell) were, in his words, softball questions no one was too eager to respond to what does it mean to be a disciple of Christ.

This is one of the qualities that I love about our group.  I dont believe that people didn't have or couldn't have given a perfectly acceptable answer to the question. Rather I think that everyone was reflecting on their own lives and their owning following of the One who had called them before popping off an answer.  Its easy to say something, but it so very much harder to live something. I love that old saying that it is better to be quiet and to be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.

A short comment, I was quite surprised to find what I think is the entire video devotion on Youtube.  Take a look if you have 15 minutes to invest in something that will make you think all week. One of our group members commented that serving God and following Him is always harder for them when they become distracted by self.  He was right, at least for me he was right.  I can take so many things about being a disciple and distort them or make them out of focus by taking them off of Jesus, the teacher, and putting it on me the struggling student.

I was reading in the gospel of John the other day about the Lord meeting Peter and John on the beach and sharing a meal with them and then giving Peter some important instruction.  Jesus had just layed a deep and I would say mysterious prophecy on Peter about the end of his (Peters) days and then said the him "Follow me".  Its at this point that Peter sees John and turns to ask Jesus, "What about this man?" And this is what stuck me; Jesus said " What is it to you........?"  See I think perhaps, for whatever reason there was some quick questioning going on in Peters head and he was wanting to compare his instruction from the Master to the plans that Jesus had for John.  What is it to you?

The focus of my calling is not what God has planned for my brother in our HFG. The focus of my calling is not what God wants to do with my wife or my children.  The focus of my calling is not even about me and my calling.  The focus of my calling is the One who called me.  I have gotten myself wrapped around the axle a number of times fretting over others opinions and thoughts about me. I have wasted time imagining the grand possibilities that could exist regarding my call. I have asked the Rabbi to please wait while I finished my deep and profound thought for my blog readers. I have made His call about me and at the same time completely stopped following him.  Silly I know, but some of our greatest struggles are going to be with the guy that stares back at us in the bathroom mirror every morning, and that dude has scary hair!

One of my favorite scriptures is found in Col 3:9 if I may bend the context a little bit.  It says that when Christ , who is our life shall appear, then we shall appear with Him.........  A little earlier in verse 3 it says that we are dead (to our sin) and that our life is hidden in Christ. Wait a minute! arent we instructed not to hide our light but to let it shine?  How can I hide and not be hidden?  This is what I love about this scripture, for me I am instructed that when I am hidden in Him, I have forfeited my own image and person and I superimpose the likeness of Christ over myself.  Thats not a bad thing because when I have taken on the Masters instruction,  manner, compassion, opinion and world view all of the sudden I begin to appear. Only its not me that lives, but Christ that lives in me.

I started this out with the title that it has never been about me. That is not an easy thing for a new Christian to get their arms around I think. Especially today with all of the constant pounding of the message of self that falls onto everyone in this country.  But there is no way to fully possess the life that the Gospel promises without laying our life on the alter and leaving it there for a sacrifice.  When Jesus' friend Lazarus died he went to the family home and one of the sisters said, in her pain, that if you (Jesus) would have been here our brother would not have died.  Jesus told her that her brother would live again, and she jumped over the NOW and went to THEN and said I know he will rise again in the resurrection.  Jesus rocked her thinking and said Martha I am the resurrection! I get all goose pimpley when I read and write that bit of scripture.  Girl you got this thing outta focus, its not about a someday promise. No its about a right now, right here promise because I Am the resurrection.  The focus is Jesus!

I has never been about me. It has always been about Him. I am Soooooo Glad its about Him.