My hope is…
…that each of us will take the time necessary to savor our Savior, love our neighbors, and focus on being healthy disciples of Jesus.
The church can become a life-taking part of your life rather than life giving. There are always needs in the church. These needs can become demands that overwhelm and exhaust us. This is not the will of God. The Lord certainly demands that we make sacrifices and work hard for His Kingdom cause in the church. This is good and right, so long as what we are doing really is for Jesus. Please don’t let people’s expectations of you, your own feelings of importance, or the fear of letting someone down be an idol. Make sure that what you are doing for Jesus really is for Jesus. Make sure it is an act of adoration and worship.
The more you serve God out of a deep love for Jesus, the more you will enjoy God’s love for you. God’s love for you fuels your love for others. If we are honest, many of us are more like the priest and Levite rather than the Samaritan in the Good Samaritan story (Luke 10). It’s not because we are bad people, but because we have so little emotional energy or time. We use most of our emotional energy and time doing stuff rather than being a loving neighbor. Please take time to love your neighbors. They need it, and you need to do it in order to be a healthy disciple of Jesus.
Being a healthy disciple of Jesus takes discipline. No one becomes a faithful follower of Christ unintentionally. We must be faithful to worship, connect, serve, equip, and multiply. This way of life can’t be a program. It must be a way of relational connection. Relationships are at the heart of a healthy disciple of Jesus. Make sure you have relationships with those you worship with, with those in your connect group, with those you serve, with those you are equipped with, and those you are sharing Jesus with as you multiply the life of Jesus by making disciples.
The Christian life is simple. It comes down to love. We are to love Jesus and other people. Stay focused on Jesus and make decisions accordingly and you will be blessed.