Following Jesus

Jesus said, “Come with me! I will teach how to bring in people instead of fish.”

Matthew 4:19 (CEV)

This has been a favorite verse of mine for some time. It takes place along the shore of Lake Galilee with two fishermen, Simon and Andrew. Jesus asks them to follow him, and they immediately drop their nets and follow him.

For as long as I have loved this verse, I still get convicted by it once in a while. In a reading this morning, I was convicted again. Henry Blackaby, in a daily devotional book titled, “Experiencing God Day by Day”, wrote about this verse for today’s reading.

The crux in this morning’s devotion was that Jesus asked the disciples-to-be to follow him. I got to thinking what that really means. How did it look to the disciples? It meant that He will lead, he will go where he wants them to go; all they have to do is follow. He will tell them what he wants them to do; all they have to do is follow. He will show them and teach them, but most of all, he will lead them. He is asking them to follow him.

Too often today we do things for Jesus, without following Jesus. We get involved in ministries that we think would benefit the church without stopping to think where Jesus might be. We visit people and share the good news without checking to see that Jesus is there.

I had a roommate in college who followed me everywhere. But he did it two steps ahead of me. We would talk as we walked, and he would always turn back as he walked. Often, I would change directions just to see how long it would take him to follow. It was fun at the time. I joked around with him quite a bit at the time.

Are we doing that with Jesus? Are we walking two steps ahead of the one we should be following? Are we going places to do things – without ever checking to see if Jesus is there?

We have been called to follow Jesus. Next time we go out to share our faith, telling others about truly good news, let’s make sure Jesus is there. Let’s make sure we let Him lead.

We will truly bring in a plentiful harvest, if we can follow Jesus. That means making sure we’re working in the same fields that He is working in.