Sometimes it hurts to follow Jesus.
I have decided to follow Jesus. What a statement. A decision. One made in a moment to last an entire lifetime. A lifetime that is full of mountain highs and valley lows. A guarantee that you will try. Yes, TRY, because ultimately that’s the best we can do. Try and try and fail and try once more. To be scrutinized for failing and to then become better from that failure. To swallow your pride. To resist temptation. To forfeit control, your own will, and your impulses. To be honest, it is a noble endeavor…. But what they don’t always tell you is that it’s a messy one too. No matter what it may look like on the outside, everyone is trying to find their way through that messiness. We have been warned that in this world there will be trials, trouble and tribulation. But don’t lose hope, because we are also told to take heart as Jesus Himself has overcome the world.
But what if take heart doesn't mean take on the spirit of invincibility… What if take heart means that it’s okay to struggle through the mess.
It’s okay to fail. It’s okay to royally screw up.
Its okay to be tired. This one is the kicker because this is sometimes the root of Christian guilt. The idea that following Jesus is constant rainbows, butterflies and a walk in wild flowers in a beautiful field. The idea that to be worthy to have a Christ-like life you must be the exact same as Christ. FALSE! No one could ever be the ultimate perfection that Jesus is and maybe not understanding that is what makes you so tired. So what if it’s okay to admit its tiring sometimes and that sometimes being so tired genuinely hurts. Thats okay! It’s okay to wonder why everything around you seems to be falling apart. It’s okay to hurt from disappointment and loss. It’s okay to hurt from watching others run their race without Jesus and seemingly still succeed. It’s okay to hurt from the doubt that creeps in. It’s okay to hurt due to people who have hurt you and to hurt from the pain you may have caused them. And it is absolutely okay to cry out to God from that hurt.
It’s okay to hurt because Jesus hurt. He cried out for deliverance. He hurt from betrayal. He hurt from fulfilling God’s will in spite of the world’s attacks.
And that’s just it isn't it. Maybe it hurts sometimes to follow Jesus because at times it hurt to be Jesus. The Bible says that if we are to share in Christ’s glory we must also share in His suffering. Yet, the two have no comparison because the glory will far outweigh that suffering.
So hold your head high. Fight the good fight. Give yourself some of that same grace that God has so freely given us. Because we know that we truly find our life when we lay it down. So lay down your plans, expectations, your fears of the future, your doubts, your loss, pain, betrayals and shortcomings. Lay them at the cross where they belong and cling to God’s promises. Take heart because He has overcome the world.
“I take pleasure in weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” -2 Corinthians 12:10
