Know the costs

"Then a teacher of the law came to him and said, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." Jesus replied, "Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.'" Matthew 8:19-20 NIV

"As runners, we generally focus on logging weekly miles via long runs and speedwork," Runner's World Magazine said in an article published on January 26. But with coronavirus restrictions limiting gym access and many of us working from home, we often find ourselves turning to daily walks for movement and mental clarity. To make those hard strolls more interesting and inviting, Apple just launched Time to Walk, a series of walks narrated by famous people. The walks are not guided workouts, but more like an interactive podcast paired with movement. As you walk, the narrator shares personal stories that include their connection to certain songs. If a visual is mentioned, your watch will ping with a photo of it to guide you through what you are hearing. At the end, you’ll get a short playlist of the songs mentioned in case you’d like to continue your walk.

And you know, when it comes to making something hard more interesting and inviting, there are many churches in our world right now that are saying and doing whatever it takes to get people inside their doors and increase their church numbers--including downplaying the cost of following Jesus. But you can be sure that the Bible makes no guarantees that those who follow Jesus will have health, wealth or a life of ease. In fact, when a teacher of the law came to Jesus saying, "I will follow you wherever you go," Jesus replied, "Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head." Make no mistake my friend--Jesus certainly wanted the man to follow Him, but He wanted the man to know the costs before making the decision. Why? Because Jesus wanted the man to follow Him for the right reasons and to be prepared for the repercussions of that decision lest he quickly fall away. 

So in our effort to lead the lost to the foot of the Cross, let us not neglect telling them that following Jesus will be hard and will cost them everything in this life; the benefits of which, we can also tell them, will be reaped for eternity. Oh what a joy it is to surrender all to follow Jesus!

Heavenly Father, thank You for reminding us that the words of Jesus should never be diluted, deleted or dismissed for any reason. Help us to bold in speaking the whole Truth of the Bible to a world in desperate need of hearing it Lord. May Your words spoken through us inspire the lost to seek You. It's in Your precious name we pray Jesus. Amen. 

Happy Running!!!

All to Jesus - Casting Crown