Following Jesus

Following Jesus

Luk 18:18 And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
Luk 18:19 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, even God.
Luk 18:20 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor thy father and mother.
Luk 18:21 And he said, All these things have I observed from my youth up.
Luk 18:22 And when Jesus heard it, he said unto him, One thing thou lackest yet: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
Luk 18:23 But when he heard these things, he became exceeding sorrowful; for he was very rich.
Luk 18:24 And Jesus seeing him said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!
Luk 18:25 For it is easier for a camel to enter in through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

...Following the LORD is a difficult thing for the natural man because just like the young ruler, we all have our personal property that we seem to be stuck on. As I sit here on 9/11/08 there are many things that run through my mind. I do, indeed, recall the thousands of folks tha6 were murdered for the cause of Mohammad, on this date and I also must think about the hurricane that appears to be targeting SE Texas, where I live. Life is full of items of concern and yet if we have chosen to follow God, these are already beyond our grasp for our LORD has taken command of our lives and has chosen our fate in all matters. (Matt. 6:25,26)
...When I served in Vietnam as a Killer Spade, my life, by legal contract, belonged to the United States Army, to do with as they chose. My pilot, when I was 24 years old, was a 19 year old Warrant Officer, whose only promise to me was to die trying to get me out of the messes he promised to get me into. Such a man deserves to be followed because he went everywhere I went. Today, I serve Jesus and He has made the most astonishing collection of promises that have ever been heard and then He, intentionally, died on the cross to prove His ability to honor His promises. He rose on the third day and proved His claim to be Second in the God Head. Having gone ahead of me, in time past, and walking with me, at this very moment, I cannot find reason to distrust Him.
...Having lived my life, along the Gulf Coast, I have seen thousands of folks die in the wake of the storms that are common here but if my LORD, Jesus, feeds the Sparrow and provides a home for the sparrow's babies, what can I, His loyal servant, ever have to fear? Paul said that to live is to live for Christ but to die is to profit. Today, after having had my aircraft shot to pieces with has many as 300 entry holes and not one of the 11 men on board injured, can I ever distrust God? I just cannot bring myself to ever distrust Him.
... Saturday. the storm could kill me, if that is God's plan but I will not be dead. Long ago, my wife and I, sold out to God and we have done our very best to live for His glory from that moment forward. Unlike the Young Ruler, we have given all that we hold over to the LORD to do with as it pleases Him, including our lives. And if the storm does get bad, maybe, God will need a witness, especially then and to serve and to follow is all I ever want to do.