Invitation

“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”               Mark 1.17

Jesus invites us to follow Him, but the choice is ours! The invitation is a most definite one and if we respond positively it will require total commitment on our behalf. We cannot half-follow, or partly follow, Jesus. I believe Christian commitment must be total, or not at all.

And what does this mean? I don’t believe it necessarily means giving up everything, though this may well be asked of some. To follow Jesus means, essentially, to embrace His commandments, to live as He would or, rather, to live my life in a way that is pleasing to Him, and to emulate Him in as  much as His entire life on earth was lived in compliance and fulfilment of the Father’s will. This, surely, is a way of life. It need not prevent ‘normal’ living, but it certainly offers a challenging template with which to fashion everyday life.

Obeying Jesus’ commands to love God first and above all, with every part of me, and to love my neighbour with the sort of regard I want for myself may not be easy, yet it is not impossible.

Challenges will most certainly arise yet Jesus Himself assures us of His help.

There is something of a promise in this statement of Jesus that, if I follow Him, He will make me a fisher of men. This may happen noticeably, in an acknowledged and recognised public ministry, or it may occur unobtrusively, privately and without fanfare. It matters not which way it comes, just so long as God’s will is done. I look to follow Jesus, and be used by Him in whatever manner He should choose.

Lord God,

It is a privilege to be invited to follow Jesus. I accept the invitation wholeheartedly. I ask You to forgive me those times when my thoughts, words and actions do not demonstrate the desire of my heart to follow You. My desire remains to live in the fullness of Your will, to be true to You in all that I do.

I look to walk in Your ways today. Lead and guide me. Let me know Your will if You would. Otherwise, just have Your way with me.

Lead, Lord, and let me follow. In You precious Name I ask.                                            Amen.