Will you follow?

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“Then a teacher of the law came to Him and said, ‘Teacher, I will follow You wherever you go.'”
Matthew 8:19

A few weeks ago, our local hop farmers had their crews out in the fields “stringing hops.”  A “hop yard” is a field where tall poles support a grid of wires; strings hooked to the wires and to the ground below.  The hop plant, a climbing vine, is induced to grow up the string and back down to the ground.

Stringing hop plants

It is essential to get the vines to grow up these strings.  Without this guide the vines would crawl along the ground, impossible to harvest, and then there could be no good German beer! (Hops are used in the brewing of most beer.)

A man came to Jesus and said, “I will follow You wherever You go.”  Jesus expresses some doubt in the ensuing passage, that this man would follow Him when he saw the hardships into which Jesus would lead him.  Will this man really cling to Jesus and follow Him wherever He goes?  Even to the cross?

What about you?  Will you follow Jesus wherever He goes?  Will you cling to Him when things get really tough, when it no longer is a happy journey walking after Jesus?

What is the alternative?  To not follow Jesus where He leads is to go your own way, your own destructive, sinful, doomed way.  You and I do not have the strength to cling to Him in the tough places, the scary places, and the dark places. What shall we do?

Thank God that Jesus reaches out to you and me and gently winds His vines back into His heart, His way, and His life.  As you and I call out to Him in our wandering ways, He does not forsake you, but forgives you and brings you back to Him.

Thank you, Jesus, for connecting me to You in your love and grace.  Jesus, lead Thou on, till our rest is won… Amen.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, CO