Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK … Please take the time to take in a YouTube images from Clay Crosse, Bob Carlisle, and BeBe Winans singing … I Will Follow Christ … powerfully singing our strong decision, as disciples of Christ, to follow Him … no matter what!
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Highlight Verse[s]: Luke 9:23 [NLT] … 23 Then He said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. ..."
… After declaring that He would soon be martyred, Jesus strongly declares what the requirements and costs of discipleship - i.e., following our Lord - must be.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Luke 9:21-24 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Jesus declares to His followers what it takes to follow Him.
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Reference Passage : … Proverbs 3:5-6 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… Our call to trust in God and follow His path … NO MATTER WHAT!!
Reference Passage : … John 14:21 [NLT] … 21 Those who accept My commandments and obey them are the ones who love Me. And because they love Me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal Myself to each of them.”
… The day before Jesus was to die on the cross, He lays out for His disciples what it will take to follow His lead … and that is obedience to His word.
Reference Passage : … Philippians 1:6 [NLT] … 6 And I am certain that God, Who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.
… God thru the Apostle Paul encourages me that He’s doing what it takes in my life to allow me to follow Christ more completely day-by-day.
My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Patricia Raybon, uses the word picture of jets flying in formation to illustrate how we must follow our Leader, Christ, wherever He would lead us. The ODB author writes … In the sky over our house, three fighter jets scream through the sky—flying in formation so close together they appear to be one [see photo]. “Wow,” I say to my husband, Dan. “Impressive,” he agrees. We live near an Air Force base and it’s not unusual to see such sights.
Every time these jets fly over, however, I have the same question: How can they fly so close together and not lose control? One obvious reason, I learned, is humility. Trusting that the lead pilot is traveling at precisely the correct speed and trajectory, the wing pilots surrender any desire to switch directions or question their leader’s path. Instead, they get in formation and closely follow. The result? A more powerful team.
When any reader here takes in the ODB entry, the photo, and the linked song, there’s not really any mystery into what Jesus is calling for from His followers, is there? It’s the kind of followership which those pilots must have to fly in formation at such speeds, isn’t it?
It’s the TRUST declared in Prov. 3:5-6! It’s the DENIAL OF SELF called for by Christ in Luke 9:23. It’s the OBEDIENCE TO GOD’S WORD demanded by our Lord in John 14:21. It’s the COMMITMENT sung so strongly about in the linked song. And … it’s the DISCIPLINE exhibited by those Navy pilots in the attached photo.
Our question here today as we take in all of this is … Are we committed, obedient, unselfish, and disciplined enough yet to be Christ’s disciples? …
Personally, I’ve got a way to go yet. … But fortunately, the Lord, thru the Apostle Paul (in Phil. 1:6) encourages me that God’s Spirit is doing what it takes to bring me to a stronger followership of my Lord … day-by-day-by-day!
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My THANKFULNESS: … Oh Abba Father, … thank You, Lord, … for making me over into a true disciple who can follow You and prayerfully let me witness for You more effectively today than tomorrow.
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My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, … King Jesus, … I pray, Lord, that all reading here are doing all we can to follow our Lord more closely today than yesterday. … Amen Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled “Our Daily Bread,” distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.
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