Radical

The last few days have been busy preparing for Ukraine and saying goodbyes here in the US.  My family is excited but also sad that I am leaving for so long.  However, I believe they are mostly excited about this new step in my life.  My mom especially, is very happy to see all the work God has done in my life and how much we all, as a family have grown closer to God.  She attributes this growth to me and my evangelical efforts aimed at my family, but I know who's responsible ;)  The Holy Spirit!  He's been working inside of me fiercely over the last 3 years to bring me to a point where I am ready to make radical changes in my life.

Speaking of Radical, I've been reading the book by David Platt and the insight from it is really life changing.  It's all about the American Dream and how we as Americans often shape Jesus and Christianity around our American Dream, so that we can live the most comfortable lives as possible.  There's much more the the book than that and I'm only in the second chapter, but there's a basic point that I'm seeing thus far; Jesus told us we would have to give up everything and the cost of following him would be great.


Luke 14:25 - 35 says

25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: ²⁶ “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. ²⁷ And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

²⁸ “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? ²⁹ For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, ³⁰ saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’

³¹ “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? ³² If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. ³³ In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.

³⁴ “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? ³⁵ It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out.

“Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”

If I had been in the place of these first century people, I'm not sure what I would have thought.  I probably wouldn't have been very excited about giving up everything to follow this guy.  Or would I?  

I've observed the radical changes God has already done in my life, and it makes me believe that the benefits of being a disciple of Christ far outweigh the earthly costs, although they are great.

I've made it my goal in life that I will be receptive and obedient to anything God wants me to do for Him and anywhere He wants me to go for Him that I may use my life to make the greatest impact I can for His kingdom and store up treasures in heaven, rather than on this earth.

That's not an easy goal, but it's God honoring and I think that's the way Jesus intended for His followers to live.

I'll post more updates as I get further into the book.  I'm hoping to finish it before I head off to Ukraine in 6 days! :)

Here's the link to the book if you're interested!

http://www.amazon.com/Radical-Taking-Faith-American-Dream/dp/1601422210/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1342124100&sr=8-1&keywords=radical