Video: The Hero's Journey

DAY 1: An Ordinary Person

READING: Luke 5:1-11

At the beginning of every story is not a hero, but an ordinary person sitting in the middle of ordinary life. Jesus always starts with regular people. In Luke 5:1-11, we meet an ordinary man named Peter, who was working as a simple fisherman when Jesus showed up on the shore with a miracle and an offer. Suddenly Peter’s mundane world is disrupted, and something deep inside is awakened. Yet Peter has responsibilities, and a family.

Multiple times Jesus gave the invitation to “follow me.” There was a rich young man in Mark 10:17-27, who asked Jesus what he must do to follow him. Jesus said he needed to leave everything behind. To another young man in Luke 9:59-62, Jesus said to leave his parents (Luke 9:59-62). Both young men chose to end their journey with Jesus right there. They elected to remain in life as they knew it.

When everyday life is disrupted, we are faced with a choice and a decision. And almost all of us initially “reject the call.” The cost is too great, we have too many responsibilities, or we are afraid. Many of us choose to end the journey before it ever begins.

Peter, too, initially rejects the call. He “fell at Jesus’ knees and said, ‘Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!’… Then Jesus said to Simon, ‘Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.’” (Luke 5:8-10, NIV). What a crazy invitation! Did Peter even know what it meant? Probably not. And yet we know that although Peter’s initial response was no, he eventually answered the call with a yes.

We each have the world we know—the “normal” that we wake up to each day. It is in this very place, the ordinary place, that Jesus calls us to step out and follow him as a disciplemaker. Jesus did not limit his invitation to the religious leaders. He invited fishermen, tax collectors, women, and the marginalized as well. The invitation to follow Jesus is given to the ordinary person who will answer the call with yes.

Disciplemaker Pro Tip

Jesus himself modeled the perfect Hero’s Journey. He knows the path and invites us to follow him as our guide. When you get lost, look to him to help find your footing.