Life Changing

Some things are life changing.  Getting married will change anyone's life.  But, the changes which take place after the altar of matrimony are nothing compared to those encountered when the first child breaks into the family circle.  Marriage partners can disagree and even argue over things that are happening, but there is always the possibility of reason taking charge.  Try reasoning with an infant child.  Impossible.  All a newborn child knows is that something is wrong and needs fixing.  Figuring it out is someone else's business.  There is no reasoning in the nursery.

 

Encountering Jesus is a life changing moment.  Anyone who worships the status quo should stay far away from Jesus.  He does not ask for a little, but a lot.  He does not require a portion of our life, but all of it.  To enter into a relationship with Jesus with the intent to take it seriously is not just life changing; instead, it needs to be understood as radical.  Anyone who thinks differently only needs to look at the Biblical story of folks like Peter, or Matthew, or the Apostle Paul.  Jesus invites those who would follow Him to walk the radical road.

 

Walking the radical road is not something that always meets the definition of reasonable.  After all, what is reasonable about giving one of your two shirts to someone who has none, or giving your last two coins as an offering to God, or walking into a lifestyle which will surely mean suffering.  Given all this, some might decide Jesus is not worth the cost.  Such a conclusion might make sense, but it is really only a choice for those who want to live a life that is less than what it could be.  Not to make a choice for Jesus means we end up living all wrapped in our selves which makes for such a small and empty world.