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Blogs > ms_warriorthingy > A Follower of Christ > Sep 8, 2008
A Follower of Christ
  
Nobody worries about Christ as long as he can be kept shut up in
churches. He is quite safe inside. But there is always trouble
if you try and let him out.

-- G. A. Studdert Kennedy


A Christian……..a follower of Christ……how do you follow Christ? How do you love Christ? Whose will………His will? How do you hear Him when He speaks? Do you hear Him? Do you listen?

Which are you…….one like the woman caught in adultery……..or the prideful scorner hurling stones?

Are you like the humble tax collector who comes before God admitting your brokenness……….or are you like the Pharisee…..better than the broken one?

Are you saved? You know the beginning…….you know the ending…….but what comes between?

What does this mean?
Luk 9:23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

What does it mean to you?

I have to admit, there is nothing easy in being a follower of Christ. It’s easy being saved, easy reading the Bible, going to church, praying but when it comes to actually living our belief and faith……we fail miserably.

Mat 11:29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
Mat 11:30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

I have taken these two verses to heart in a big way. Because being a follower of Christ is sometimes burdensome. Giving up your desires for His desires, asking for His will in your life as opposed to your own….this is not an easy thing. But He equips us, and gives us the strength we need to walk the walk with Him.

Psa 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

When you ask God to create in you a clean heart…….it means sometimes He has to break you down, bring you to your knees……..and it hurts! Coming face to face with God with all your brokenness has got to be one of the most painful things you will ever do….but I can tell you from the depth of my heart that it is the most spirit refreshing thing you will ever do!

The closer you draw to God, the lonlier you feel as a Christian. There is nothing sadder than talking with a fellow believer about the wonders of the Holy Spirit, the amazing grace of God, and they look at you with glazed eyes. I know this because I too once stood with glazed eyes, just “not getting it”. When I talk about listening to His Word while I sleep, or listening to His Word on my IPOD as I walk, other Christians look at me as though I am whacko!

Mat 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

What does that verse mean to you? It means exactly what it says to me.

And if we are mocked for loving God this way……….who is being mocked……is it me………is it God’s work in me……..is it God Himself?

Mt. 11:15
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WHAT IS GOING ON BEHIND THE SCENES? Sep 8, 2008 4:03 am
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Do you, like me, go through your day, forgetting that God is doing stuff behind the scenes? He is moving...preparing hearts...changing minds...making things happen.

And there we are, totally oblivious....there is thunder in the distance...the voice of God!

I'm kind of excited coz I heard something today that has rocked my socks off!

One of my work colleagues, a woman least likely to want to discover God, came up to me and told me her daughter came home singing this song...and my colleague actually sang it to me...wow she learnt the words quick!!

Anyways one of the words this child was singing, was "I am not worthy". So my colleague, let's call her "G" said to me that she had a problem with that, coz here she is teaching her children that they are worthy, and yet her child comes home singing a gospel tune with those very words! She wanted to ask me what my thoughts were on it.

So I explained to her what it means to me, as a follower of Christ. And I explained that though I am unworthy to stand before Him, I am still worthy in His sight etc.

But it was her next statement that TOTALLY floored me! She said she was about to do the Alpha course!! For those of you who don't know it, it's a course for people who don't know what God is all about....it's a basic course on Christianity, and it's changing lives all around the world. It originated in an Anglican church in England, and is now worldwide...it's a good course..I have actually co led one so I can tell you that firsthand.

But that's not all.....apparently her mother in law has started going to this church that "G" affectionately calls "the happy clappers". It's a Pentecostal church...and this is where G will be doing the course.

I was so excited, I thought I would bust something!

I guess it brought home something significant to me. Apart from God moving and shaking behind the scenes, who we are to the people around us is very important. We are supposed to be a light that shines the love of God to everyone around us.

I personally don't go around evangelising at work (coz I've been barred from doing that!) but I am ALWAYS talking about what God means to me, and if someone asks a question, I am ever ready to chat with them.

It's amazing what people notice....and they do! We are being watched so we better watch ourselves huh?

Anyways I'm going to pray like crazy for G and I'm looking forward to chatting with her after each meeting!

She is so funny....at the beginning of this course they have an Alpha dinner, where people can get to know each other and feel comfortable before commencing the course....anyways she says to me "they want me to go to God, and now they want me to take a casserole too?"...I cracked up!

If God places it in your heart...pray for G?
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COCOON Sep 8, 2008 2:09 am
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Some of you know my story about the cocoon I had wrapped myself in for so many years. It was my own little self protected cocoon, a place where no one could hurt me, no one could reach inside. I gave the appearance of normality on the outside, but on the inside I was broken and closed off to everything. I had friends, I did church, was involved in ministry, but I would not give of myself to anything or anyone. I would not even look at men, had no interest in dating....in fact I had no interest in anything! I was miserable, but I was safe in my misery, if that makes any sense!

There were so many arrows thrown at me...they lacerated my heart, but I would wrench them out....and place them on the floor of my cocoon. After a while there were so many of those things on the ground, the way out of my cocoon was closed off. Even if I wanted to escape, I didn't know how.

But God did.

And one day, He just picked up all those arrows and threw them out, then He led me out of my cocoon.

And He changed my life! He transformed me!

He gave me some promises at that time.....He told me He was leading me into spacious places, and He would uphold me with His righteous right hand! I have held those promises so close to my heart....and He has kept those promises!

The reason I'm sharing these things with you is that recently I have become so discouraged, that I have found myself wanting to head back to the safety of that cocoon. I guess I keep forgetting how horrible my life was while I was in there huh?

Yesterday was a battle for me. It would be so easy to just give up, believe the lie. God has given me visions and dreams, God has spoken to me about many things....but lately I found myself doubting that I had ever heard from Him. I convinced myself that it was my fickle heart, yearning for something that was so out of reach. I wanted to run and hide, close myself off and just wait it out until Jesus came back.

Yet something deep within me was crying out.....guess that was the restlessness I was feeling yesterday. It was a sense of "surely this isn't all there is, surely there is something more"......

Then I received an email from a friend, with a word from God to me....."tell her I'm holding up her right hand". Suddenly His promise came back to me.....I WILL UPHOLD YOU WITH MY RIGHTEOUS RIGHT HAND. Incidently, my friend did not know of the promise God had made to me all those years ago!

The dreams, the visions, the words He gave.....they all mean something.....He gave them to me for a reason. He has a plan and a purpose.....VICTORY IS MINE SAITH THE LORD.

My wing might be broken, but I am still flying....praise God...I am still flying! I have a peace in my heart......He has my life in His hands..my tomorrows are in His hands...I don't have to worry about the finer details, I don't have to worry and look for what's ahead....He has gone before me and prepared the way. Everything that I am is in Him. All I have to do is fly, keep my eyes on Him, be obedient to His leading....and finally I will land on solid ground...that He has prepared for me.

Father, forgive me for forgetting the promises You made....forgive me for doubting the words, the visions, the dreams.....thank You from the bottom of my heart Lord. Thank You for loving me so much that You will do great things in me and through me. Thank You for NEVER letting go.
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