Follow Me.Jesus said those words quite a few times … stop what you are doing and follow me. He didn’t say ‘come to church with me next Sunday.’ He didn’t say ‘here’s a pamphlet’. He said ‘follow me’. Yes, He taught the people in the streets, told parables in people’s homes, and preached in the temples … but in the end, he led by example and expected his followers to … well, follow him.
What would it look like if we did that - if we said to someone asking about Jesus to follow us? Would it have the same value as when Jesus said it? Not even close! I’ve said to quite a few people ‘why don’t you come to church with me’, quoted scripture or told someone about Jesus and the difference he’s made in my life… but what if I had said ‘follow me’. What happened right after those conversations? I felt better – I shared the word of God with someone. Then got in my car, drove home and got angry at the slow poke in front of me. Or maybe it wasn’t until the next morning that I yelled at Morgan because she wasn’t getting ready for school fast enough. Maybe it was on the way to work when I walked past the homeless guy on the street – the same one I pass every day as I walk into work with my cup of coffee in my hand. Maybe it wasn’t even something I did … but something I didn’t do. Did I thank God for my lunch? Did I spend time in His word or play Candy Crush on my break?
If I begin my day saying to someone ‘I’m a Christian – follow me’, what would their thoughts be at the end of that day? What would they define a Christian as? Would my actions match my words? Probably not. “But I’m not Jesus”, you say. True. We are never going to be perfect – never going to get it right all of the time. But … that is still our goal. We are still called to follow Him. We grow. We fail – and we repent and try harder. Remember, whether you say the words ‘follow me’ or not … someone is. Whether it’s the man on the street, the atheist at work or your children at home … someone is paying attention. People will watch to see what you do – how you handle situations, what you say, and how you treat others. It is by example, not by words, that show the world that you are a follower of Jesus Christ. Make sure that what you show them matches what you tell them.
