Sereniti- 30 Days to a New Start Sample

Follower or Fan

Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross and follow me.- Matthew 16:24(NLT)

Being a follower of someone or something is not something we do because it's the latest and greatest thing to do or because it's the most popular; however, being a follower requires commitment, it demands diligence. Many of us say we're committed to being followers, but we're more like fans of Jesus instead. Most times, we say we're following, we say we're committed, and we say we're faithful, but where's the proof? It's not in the pudding!  Instead of showing a public display, some tend to do it in the dark or not at all. How does that work? It doesn't.

When you're a follower, whose commitment and loyalty, are truly genuine, there should be recognizable evidence. One of the ways we show our dedication and our devotion to someone is through a consistent public display. Commitment isn't seen as your being a show-off,  but rather, it shows the world that you belong to Christ and you're proud of it.

Here's the thing we sometimes forget: God never shows his love for us in secret, but He instead shows how much He loves us by giving a public display of that love by the way He blesses us. That public display is the perfect demonstration of what God thinks about His own. Once we experience that demonstration, it's up to us to reciprocate that love by following Him and doing so in a public way.

Love shouldn’t be hidden. Is yours on display? 

Meditation:

Matthew 16:23-27

Prayer:

Father, I pray that there will always be an outward demonstration of my love towards You in everything that I do. I pray never to be secretive about our relationship, but always to keep you first, so that my desire for you becomes stronger as I continue to follow you daily. In Jesus' name, Amen.