You Really Want to Follow Jesus?

I have been preaching for almost a year now through the Gospel of Luke.  We have been going walking through this gospel asking the question "What is the good news (gospel) that Luke is trying to tell us and how does that affect our lives?"  The past 2 Sundays we have been in one of the most pivotal moments in the gospel in Luke 9:18-27.  At this point in his ministry, Jesus takes his mentorship of the disciples and his requirements for following him to a different level.  He asks the disciples the most important question that everyone has to face in life, "Who do you say that I am?"  Everything in life revolves around getting that answer right.  It's the final exam question that determines whether we pass or fail.  If you get the wrong answer to that question, the rest of your life will be off course with God.

Peter boldly gives the correct answer, "You are the Christ of God."  That answer has multiple layers of implications to it.  If Jesus is not the Christ, the Son of God, then following him is useless.  He was either extremely delusional or deceptive.  However, if Jesus really is the Christ, and you truly believe that, then there are dramatic implications on our lives that follow.  That is why Jesus then gives them the first proclamation of the gospel in verse 22 and then gives them very costly consequences of obedience and following him in verse 23.

Based on this text, I saw three essential elements of true salvation and three essential elements of true discipleship that I preached these past two weeks.

The Essential Elements of True Salvation

1.  True Salvation Requires a Bold Confession of the Person of Christ (verse 18-20) - Just like Peter, we must boldly confess that we too believe that Jesus is the "Christ" of God.  He is the Anointed One.  He is the only begotten Son of God sent from heaven.  He is the sinless Son who came in full obedience to his Father to meet all the righteous requirements of the law and to die in full payment for the sins of man.  We cannot just say that we like Jesus.  We cannot just stop at saying "Yes, Jesus is God's Son", because there are a million other follow-up questions that must be asked.

2.  True Salvation Requires a Deep Conviction in the Gospel of Christ (verse 21-22) - After Peter correctly answered the question about Jesus' personhood, Jesus then gave them a clear proclamation about his work.  We have to fully understand both Jesus person and his work for the gospel to make sense to us.  Jesus tells his disciples that he will be handed over to the religious leaders and killed and rise again three days later.  In Matthew's gospel, he records that at this point Peter tries to interrupt Jesus and tell him that cannot happen. This is not the "Christ" or "Messiah" that Peter and the others had in mind.  It's a reminder that we can know the truth about who Jesus is, but completely miss the truth of what he came to do.  Being truly saved means that we feel a deep conviction in our life about the gospel, that we trust in Christ's payment for our sin, that we by faith fully rely on his work on the cross and trust him as Savior and Lord.

3.  True Salvation Requires a Radical Commitment to Follow After Christ (verse 23-26) - Jesus then ties into the statement about the gospel the radical consequences of those who want to follow him.  He says in essence, "I am going to Jerusalem where they are going to kill me, but I will rise again.  Now, if you want to follow me, forget about yourself, take up your cross, and come on."  This is radical obedience.  And, this is the radical obedience that has been missing for the most part in churches in the American culture for a long time.  I will break these down a little further below in the sermon I preached yesterday.

The Essential Elements of True Discipleship

There are lots of people that like to identify with Jesus somehow.  There are millions in our country that claim allegiance to Christ.  However, it is clear that not all who claim to be "Christians" are truly converted or following him.  Unfortunately,deeply embedded in our American consciousness is the desire to be sovereign over our own lives.  The result is that many try to follow Jesus on their own terms and many churches have become safe havens for the falsely converted and comfortably religious, but lost.  Jesus makes very hefty demands in verses 23-26 on what it truly means to follow him.

1.  True Discipleship Requires a Determined Submission to Follow After Christ (verse 23) - Jesus has already said that the path of following him ends in death and resurrection.  If we want salvation, we have to be willing to die to self and be born again in new life.  Jesus makes this clear when he says if we follow him, we must deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow him.  Self-denial means saying "good-bye" to your former life before meeting Christ.  It means putting your agenda in submission to him.  Taking up your cross is not just having to deal with the troubles of this world, but a complete and daily dying to self.  It means daily confessing that "I am crucified with Christ, and I no longer live."  Following him means that we go where Jesus goes.  We don't determine the direction of our lives.

2.  True Discipleship Requires a Complete Surrender to the Cause of Christ (verse 24-25) - Jesus says that we cannot try to live our lives in such a way to accumulate things for our own significance.  If we try to "save" our lives by our own effort, we will lose them.  But if we "lose" our life in complete surrender to Christ, we find true salvation and purpose as God designed us.  He further illustrates this question with a tragic picture of a man who achieves all the earthly success that he is longing for, but has to give up his eternal soul in the process.  We cannot be surrendered to Jesus and sold out to the things of this world at the same time.

3.  True Discipleship Requires a Courageous Identification with the Person of Christ (verse 26) - Finally, Jesus says that we cannot live our lives ashamed to be associated with him.  We must boldly wear the name of Jesus and bear all the consequences of that.  We must face ridicule, rejection, scorn, criticism, slander, imprisonment, persecution, and even death if necessary because Jesus Christ faced all that for us.  We must passionately reject the cultural Christianity of our day that makes Jesus look like a peace-loving hippie and requires nothing to follow him.

What say you?  Have you thought through the dramatic consequences and costs that Jesus gives to follow him?  Or, have you been the victim of a pasteurized Christianity that has been conveniently sanitized of all the demands on our lives?  Truth is, because of what Jesus has done for us on the cross, I really see no other way to respond other than full allegiance and submission to go wherever he goes, to pay whatever it costs to follow him.

Are "Near-Death" and "Post-Death" Experiences Really Necessary?

Time to get something that's bothering me a little bit off my chest.  I was at home today for lunch and my wife was watching Pat Robertson's 700 Club.  I am not really a big fan of Robertson or his ministry. I think he sticks his foot in his mouth way too much, but I have had that said about me more than once.  700 Club does have some very inspiring stories, they pray for people, and overall I think his ministry is much more harmless than Paul Crouch, Benny Hinn, and many others.  Anyway, towards the end of the program they did their usual appeal to "become a member of the 700 Club" for a monthly donation.  As a "thank-you gift" they would send to me "this powerful video full of stories of people who have experienced near-death experiences - some to heaven and some to hell."  This really is beginning to bother me some.

This video is the latest in the line of many resources that are now beginning to proliferate the church market about people who claim to have died and what they saw and experienced right after.  The market is currently flooded with these types of books and videos - (Heaven is for Real, 90 Minutes in Heaven, 23 Minutes in Hell, The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven, My Time in Heaven, and several more).  These type resources are creating a frenzy among people who want to hear these "amazing stories" of what life is like "on the other side."  I think this is mostly due to our innate fear of dying and many people's uncertainty of whether there is something else or what it's like.  I think it's also because in our media-driven age we are drawn into fascinating stories.  I personally met and heard Don Piper share his experience of Heaven and listened with rapt attention.  I believe Piper to be a very humble, sincere, and fascinating brother-in-Christ.  As far as I can discern, his story seems very real and his accounts of Heaven didn't appear to contradict what I have studied personally from God's word. 

I will admit that I have personally never read any of these books and really don't feel the need to.  I do not know any of the other people, other than Don Piper, that have written these books or told their stories.  I am not so cynical as to think that these people had to have made these stories up and are doing so for personal gain.  I don't think they are greedy.  I also admit that in most of the cases that I have heard of there is medical evidence that these people died and later came back to life.  I don't even question that.  I am not questioning whether these "experiences" are real.  I cannot know, prove, or disprove that at all.  My question is "Are these stories and experiences necessary?"  I am not questioning the validity of these stories, just their necessity.  Are we now to assume that we are living in an age where God, because of the technology and interconnectedness of the world, has now chosen to reveal truths about heaven, hell, and the afterlife through new stories?  Are we to assume just because some of these people claim personal faith in Jesus Christ that these are experiences sent by God to tell us something?  There are other questions I think these books raise as well:

1. If God really is behind these experiences and revelations, why is he choosing to do this now and seemingly so often?  These are not the first people to have near-death experiences and talk about them.  However, is it just because we have more media that we are aware of them or is God up to something.
2. If God is not really behind these experiences, then where are they generating from and could some of them possibly have a demonic origin designed to confuse and distract Christ-followers?  Scripture says that Satan masquerades himself as an angel of light.  I am not suggesting these this is the case, just asking the question.
3. Does the Bible not provide enough sufficient explanation about Heaven and Hell?  I think one of the tragedies of these resources is that we are relying on these accounts to "understand what Heaven and Hell are like" instead of the sufficiency of what God has already said about them in the Bible.  The result of this is people propagating ideas about heaven that have no scriptural basis.  I know several good books about Heaven that have been written that are completely based on Scriptural revelation and not second-hand sources.  (Heaven by Randy Alcorn, The Glory of Heaven by John MacArthur, One Minute After You Die by Erwin Lutzer)  I would recommend reading these as a substitute or at worse as a supplement for these other books.
4. If there are things in these books that contradict or confuse what is revealed in Scripture, how do we handle that?  The problem for most people who buy these books is that they haven't carefully evaluated everything that is revealed in God's word about these subjects, so they don't know error when they read it.  
5. Can these type resources eventually become a substitute for Scripture?  I have seen people who will voraciously read these books but if you ask them about their personal time in God's word they will say that they find it hard to "make time for the Bible".  What does that say about us?
6. How do we discern "legitimate" experiences from "illegitimate" ones?  By what standard do we have to decide which stories are real and which are not?  Are we to assume all of them are real?  Are we to assume all of them are false?
7. ?  The rich man in hell pleaded with Abraham to let him or someone else go back and warn his family.   And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' He said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.'"  Did Jesus change his mind now from that story and now think that people rising from the dead is a legitimate way to evangelize?

I don't want in any way to stir up emotions and controversy with these thoughts and questions.  Again, in this post, I don't question whether any of these were valid experiences or not.  I don't know if I have researched the subject or these books enough to make a declaration of their validity or not.  I just question whether they are necessary for us at this time to advance the truth of the gospel or not.  Or, are they just some kind of TMZ for Christians?  


If you want to read one of these books and find them to be inspirational and informative, I am glad.  I hope they can be a true blessing and hope they verify what is revealed in Scripture.  Maybe after reading them you can help me answer the question of this post more clearly.  I would like to know if these are necessary and why.  I would simply request that you at least take time beforehand to research carefully all the richness that Scripture already reveals about this subject so that you can be better armed to see truth from error.  If you can, pick up one of the other books on the subject I recommended earlier to help.  Not everyone will agree with my thoughts and I do not mean to offend.  I am just questioning and am concerned how many more of these we will have to see before we drive ourselves back to the already sufficient revelation of God given to us in the word.

Remembering 9/11

Like many of you, I spent a lot of time this weekend watching 9/11 memorials and tributes.  Auburn University and the band did a fantastic job yesterday morning honoring the victims of 9/11 in it's pregame program. It has been difficult to see the images and hear some of the stories.  It's also been refreshing to hear some of the stories of heroism at Ground Zero and the Pentagon again that remind us that as Americans we have a kindred spirit to help our neighbors.  That's one of the beautiful thing about being an American.  Most of us are very patriotic and when you hurt one of us, all are affected.

9/11 will probably go down as the major defining moment of my generation.  My grandfather's generation had Pearl Harbor that ushered in a patriotic fervor and involved them in a global war against tyranny.  This will be our "Pearl Harbor" with a few major exceptions.  For one, the technology and media coverage that ensued immediately following the first attack will preserve forever the images of people jumping to their death, of the gaping holes in the tower, and of the horrors of watching them fall floor by floor in front of our eyes.  Just like Pearl Harbor in my grandparent's generation, everyone in this generation will remember vividly where they were and how they felt on September 11th.  My family and I were in Hilton Head, South Carolina on a beach vacation.  Our oldest son was just shy of 2 years old and our second son was seven months old.  My wife and Nathan were in the pool for an early morning swim and I was surfing the Internet for information about MSU football when someone posted on a message board that an airplane had hit the World Trade Center.  I turned on the TV and became entranced by the moment.

9/11 is a moment that still invokes fear.  It is a moment that brings us face-to-face with our own frailty.  It is a reminder that as much as we like to believe we have sovereignty of our lives, we are ultimately in the hands of someone else.  Here are some other lessons I have learned in the wake of 9/11.

1.  This world and the United States of America is not my "home" - Don't mistake this for anti-patriotism.  I am as proud to be an American as Lee Greenwood.  I cry every time I hear that song played at the laser show at Stone Mountain.  However, earth and the US are just a temporary residence for me while inhabiting an earthly body.  Scripture says that the believer is an "alien and stranger" here on earth.  While I love baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Ford (ok, I know it's supposed to be Chevrolet, but I'm a Ford man), I also hold loosely to my allegiance to any earthly kingdom.  For me, there is one "king" and he is "King of Kings".  I enjoy the earthly benefits of a democracy while I live in the reality of a theocracy.  One day I will enjoy for eternity the benefits of my heavenly citizenship.  In the meantime, I had the privilege of living in a great country and enjoying the benefits of religious freedom.

2. Our fears and vulnerabilities are not enough to motivate us towards true repentance - Think about the weeks after September 11.  Every church was filled with people looking for answers.  I don't think most churches were ready to deal from a biblical standpoint with what was happening.  Most churches I know of were still very much entrenched in the "felt-needs" and "seeker-sensitive" models that tried to comfort fears, but didn't hold out the hope of the gospel and how 9/11 should drive us to our need and dependency on the gospel.  Most of us saw the numerical influx as great for business, but it didn't last.  Why?  Because fear is a bad motivator for true repentance.  This is why I don't believe the Judgment House mentality works all that well.  I understand and embrace showing people the realities of sin and judgment, but scare tactics into heaven, in my experience, don't last.  True repentance has to start with the gospel by showing that our sin is a violation of God's character and not just a ticket into hell.  When people are afraid, that is a great time to take them not to the realities of hell, but to the sufficiency of God our refuge. 

3.  Despite our attempts in America at pluralism, 9/11 is a sure indicator that all religious faiths are not equally valid - I have no beef with Muslims except that I think their faith claim is false.  It breaks my heart that millions of people around the world believe a religious ideology that claims an exclusive path into Paradise apart from Jesus Christ.  I certainly don't think all or most Muslims are terrorist extremists who want to kill Americans.  I think the terrorists that planned and executed the 9/11 attacks were motivated more by political ideology than true religious ideology.  I also don't even come close to thinking that America is a "Christian nation" and that makes us a target for religious extremists.  However, at it's core, the September 11 attacks come from centuries of conflict that date back to a very unwise move by Abraham thousands of years ago.  The disaster of 9/11 should show us that while we may try to build a more loving, unified world, opposing truth claims will eventually come into conflict, sometimes with violent ends.

In closing, as an American, my heart breaks and righteous indignation wells up inside me every time I see the images of 9/11.  I am proud and grateful for the thousands of men and women who have fought for our independence and freedom in Afghanistan and Iraq over the last ten years.  I know many who have paid a heavy price to ensure that we are a free nation, that freedom is extended to others, and that crimes like those of 9/11 will be justly punished.  I am so grateful for the men who risked their lives to take down Osama Bin Laden and am glad that his regime is over.  I am thankful that the brutal dictatorship of Saddam Hussein has ended.  However, I know that my ultimate aim is not to see America as the worldwide great hope, but to see Jesus Christ rightly enthroned on this earth as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  When he returns, all justice will be meted out and the righteous will finally proper.

What Should Tiger Say?

I have been quiet for the most part on the Tiger Woods issue since it came out several weeks ago about his adultery and it's resultant disaster upon his family and his credibility. I, like most people, formed an opinion quickly. However, I have learned from the past that most of the time when a story like this comes out, whether a celebrity or average Joe, that we don't hear all the story up front and the longer we go, the more info that comes out. I tried to reserve my public opinion until more info came out. I despise organizations like TMZ that tend to sensationalize events and create publicity for themselves at others expenses. The early media frenzy regarding Tiger was disgusting, in my opinion.

Tiger Woods is a human being, created in the image of God. God loves Tiger very much and desires that he would come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). God has given Tiger an incredible talent and desires that Tiger would use his talent as a platform for the glory of God (1 Cor 10:31). Tiger is not guilty of any sin that any other man is not capable of. Tiger has lived a life that has placed him at the center and has reaped the results of that. I heartily agree with Brit Hume and his brave comments about what Tiger must do in order to find peace with God. (previous post)

Tiger has now announced that he is going to have a "press conference" tomorrow to talk for the first time. This has created a lot of buzz about what Tiger will say and what he should say. This morning I heard Mike Greenberg on Mike and Mike in the Morning ask this question, "What does Tiger Woods need to apologize for?" Greenberg's point was that he agreed that what Tiger did was wrong, but does he really need to publicly apologize. In Greenberg's opinion, what Tiger did was between him and his family and doesn't affect the rest of us. Interesting opinion and one that I don't totally agree with. I don't think that as a 42-year old guy from rural Alabama that Tiger owes me an apology for anything. His sin, while disgusting and egregious, was not personally against me or my family. I have not been adversely affected at all by Tiger's transgressions. I actually have a forum because of his sin to talk to my sons about the humanity of all public figures, no matter how talented, and the impact of sin.

However, the question still remains, "Should Tiger apologize?" Some say that he is a role model and that he has destroyed his credibility. I think any sports figure, whether they like it or not, serves as somewhat of a "hero figure" to the younger generation. Talent and success carry the price of responsibility and those who are blessed with them must have a sense of accountability and stewardship. This is something that those who cheated at baseball with performance enhancing drugs forgot or neglected. However, I don't think Tiger should apologize just because he is a role model.

I think Tiger should apologize because that is the first step towards true confession and repentance. Tiger's actions have destroyed his credibility. He is, at the present time, not an acceptable role model for my three boys. He is a liar and and adulterer. He lied to his wife about his wedding vows and gave his heart and body to other women to feed his sinful flesh. He has violated the most basic God-ordained unit - the family. He doesn't have to answer to me or you for that. He must answer to his family and the Lord Jesus. However, Tiger is not the first or most prominent figure historically to commit adultery. The King of Israel, David, not only committed the same sin, he also had her husband killed making him an accessory to murder. David's sin was just as disgusting as Tiger's. However, David was known as a "man after God's own heart." The difference? When David's sin was found out, he publicly confessed and repented. He wrote of his agony over his sin and issued a public statement in Psalm 51.

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge. Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place. Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you. Psalm 51:1-12

While I do not think this will be what Tiger says, ultimately, this is what I hope happens to him. This is what I hope happens to all of us that are guilty of the filth and disgust of sin. I hope and pray that the story of Tiger turns out to be one of redemption and forgiveness and not just one of admission and eventual forgetting, like the Kobe Bryant incident. Make no mistake. I believe that Tiger will recover in the "public eye" eventually. He will return to golf. He will win tournaments. He will get his endorsement offers because businesses want to make money and will attach themselves to success over character. The story of Kobe reminds me of these facts. I am more concerned that Tiger can recover in the sight of God than in public opinion. That is why what Tiger has to say tomorrow is of interest to me. King David or Kobe Bryant? Which fate will Tiger choose?

A Midweek Update

Still lots of crazy things happening around here that are keeping me from being consistent with my Monday morning updates. Some Mondays are so filled with catching up that I find myself late Monday night trying to come up with something. Anyway, here is a midweek update on life and ministry.

• Great Sunday this past weekend at Sixth Street. However, attendance continues to be sporadic and less than what I anticipated. We have been getting several visitor cards the last few weeks though. I hope that we can develop an attitude of anticipation that motivates our church members to be more faithful.
• My youth minister, Eric, preached for me Sunday night and did a pretty good job. He's young and eager to serve the kingdom and has a great future ahead of him. I know that one of the reasons I am where I am is because men like Mickey Dalrymple, Wes Cantrell, John Gibson, Scotty Hogan, and Les Hughes believed in me and nurtured in me ministry and opportunities to preach. I hope I can be as good at mentoring the next generation as those guys were to me.
• Sunday was my birthday. It was a great one. I turned 41. Lots of great well-wishes from the congregation and someone even bought our lunch at Pizza Hut. Then, Wednesday night, one of my church members brought me a pound cake! It was still warm when I cut into it. Mmmmmmmm!
• I am starting a new series this coming Sunday called "Amazed by Grace." I have been doing a lot of reading in the Scripture and in some great books on grace. It has been a wonderful and enriching time. I don't do it enough, but this kind of saturating in God's Word is great.
• One of the main reasons for the lack of postings has been our housing situations here and in Alabaster. This past Tuesday, we drove back to Alabaster and signed the paperwork to sell our house. It was a huge blessing. Our house sold in 2 months from putting it on the market to pocketing the money! (And this in a down house market) Many thanks to our realtor Tim Mitchell. He did a great job! Check out his website at timmitchellsells.com. Now we have to find a house here. We are back to square one in our search, but I hope we will put a contact down on something in the next week.
• I am challenged each and every day by my need to be a more effective father. God has blessed me with three incredible gifts and I am way too passive in their spiritual development. They have been very challenging lately. I know this is in part to the chaos of moving, new schools, and an uncertain housing situation. Alison and I are starting a new book from Kevin Leman that looks great. It's called "Have a New Kid by Friday." I also have to start being much more proactive with starting and being consistent with family devotions. I want them to be students of God's Word and they need to get that from me. Much prayer is appreciated on this.
• I am trying to be more active in getting out of the office and visiting some of our dear saints that can no longer attend church. I got out to three of them yesterday afternoon and it was a major blessing for me.
• It's a great time of the year sports-wise. The Red Sox clinched the wild-card berth this week and start the playoffs next Wednesday. I got to go to the MSU/LSU game for my birthday. So close! It was a great rocking environment. Good days are ahead in Starkville!

That's about all so far for this week. Lots of stuff on my mind and I hope to have some time to do a mind-dump later on this week.

Obeying God's Voice

Do you ever have those times when you sense God is telling you to do something you don't want to to, something inconvenient, and you have that battle of whether or not God was telling you to do it? Henry Blackaby calls this struggle in Experiencing God a "crisis of belief." Let me tell you something that happened to me this morning...

I left home for work. I had to be at a staff meeting in about 20 minutes. As I turned on a road not too far from home, I saw this guy running down the side of the road with a gas can. It was about 1/2 a mile from where he was to the next gas station. I was right up next to him, pretty much past him, when I saw the gas can in his hand. Until then, I wondered why he was running because he was in jeans and a work shirt.

As I drove past him, I sensed, I should stop and help. Then I thought of all the reasons not to: I had to get to work, I would have to turn around, someone else would probably stop and help, etc. I was comfortable to see a person in need and keep on driving. Ironically, I was listening to worship music on my ipod and singing praise to God at the time. I thought "How ironic that I am singing 'Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of Creation..." while I was letting someone in need pass right by me. I thought about Jeremiah 29:13 when God says, The Lord says: "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men." I also thought how much I am like the Pharisee and the Levite instead of like the Samaritan.

As a matter of fact, most of the time I am very comfortable being a Pharisee. It fits my personality much easier. It's a whole lot easier to know the rules and expect people to live up to them than it is to love God with all my heart and love my neighbor as myself. Love is inconvenient, and costly, and time-consuming. I wear the Pharisee garment so much I have become very accustomed to it.

So what did I do...I heard the voice of God clearly say, "You will sit there and sing to me and see your neighbor in need and tell me that it's too late, someone else has already picked him up. What a loser." (God really didn't say that last part, I think I did. So I turned my truck around in the middle of heavy traffic, waited at the red light, and went back. I told God the whole way that he wouldn't be there, and wouldn't you know it, he was. I pulled up and said, "Hey, need some help?" I gave him a short ride to the BP, waited on him to fill his can, and then gave a short ride back to his truck. It took about 8 minutes of my day. 8 lousy minutes. How sad is it when I struggle giving 8 minutes to God to serve my neighbor? He was very thankful and I was very ashamed.

I don't tell this story so that people will say "Matt's such a great guy for helping that dude." Truth is, most of the time I pass people on the side of the road, homeless people looking for help, and just walk right by. After a few seconds, the Spirit quits speaking and I can keep my 8 minutes for myself. It's the easy thing to do. I tell this story because I found out the hard way today that obedience brings peace. When we stay sensitive to God's voice, then we conform closer to Christ's character. I only hope from now on, I follow through sooner.