Better Together

Are you a follower of Jesus? By that, I mean, have you made the decision to leave the leadership to Him, find out what the Word is all about and begin to be obedient to His guidance in your life? If you are a parent, with children following you, I truly hope that you have decided to follow Him! Otherwise, they will be on the wrong track!

Next question… do you feel like this is something that you are doing alone? Is it a private deal that you don’t really share with anyone? I sure hope not, because that would be the blueprint for failure. It may be possible… but it is not the way Jesus said we are to live out our faith. We need to live in community. To spend time with other believers who help us through the questions and the conflicts and the temptations. Friends who will encourage us and strengthen our faith. Friends who will remind us that there is only ONE answer to life’s toughest questions.

Okay, just one more question… Do you want your kids to follow Jesus? Well, I didn’t really have to ask that question, because if you read my blog you are more than likely a parent who is trying to raise their kids to know and follow Jesus. And if that is the case, can they see that you are surrounding yourself with the kind of people who are helping you do that? Do they see you investing in anyone who hasn’t been on their journey with Jesus as long as you?

The first followers of Jesus learned that they needed to stick together. They needed each other. They faced persecution like we probably will never face. They needed the strength to walk a dangerous road and that strength came from the encouragement of others who had actually been touched by the hand of God in human form. Our society may look different today. We don’t have to fear persecution for what we believe in a culture where we are taught that we need to believe whatever we feel like believing and do whatever feels good… HOWEVER… we still need the support of other believers. Why? Because we live in a culture where we are taught that we need to believe whatever we feel like believing and do whatever feels good! There is DANGER written all over that and we will fall if we try to go it alone.

God wants us to be strong… but didn’t design us to live in isolation. Our faith community is of critical importance. Accountability is crucial to our growth and development as followers. To whom are you accountable? Who is it that knows where you struggle? Where you are tempted to cross a line? As Christians, we sometimes think that we must be kind from a distance and not enter into the life of others. It’s their business, right? We really don’t want anyone in our business so why would we enter into theirs? Let me answer that for you; WE WERE MADE TO FUNTION AS A BODY.  An arm alone is not going to function well unless it is attached to the body… no matter how muscular it is. An eye with perfect vision is worthless rolling around on the floor. I know that sounds silly, but this is real stuff ! If you are not surrounding your family with a church where people walk the path together that Jesus has laid out for them; if you are keeping your faith walk separate from your work walk; if you are spending more time with friends who are not walking with Jesus than friends who are… You will become weak and powerless to fight the forces of evil that want nothing more than to destroy the Church, one person at a time.

Want to be a stronger Christian? Want your faith to increase? Want to be a good example for your kids? Start walking toward eternity with other followers of Jesus who will support you and challenge you to be the person God made you to be and the parent your kids need you to be.