Daily Devotion

Are You Willing?

"As he was going along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew. They were throwing a net into the sea because they were fishermen.  Jesus said to them, "Come, follow me! I will teach you how to catch people instead of fish."  They immediately left their nets and followed him. As Jesus went on a little farther, he saw James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They were in a boat preparing their nets [to go fishing].  He immediately called them, and they left their father Zebedee and the hired men in the boat and followed Jesus.  Mark 1:16-20 GWT

As I'm learning now, it is not a matter of can God use us and our lives, but better yet, are WE willing to be used by God.  I'm sure you can relate to this.  When I was growing up it was not necessarily "cool" to be really smart or different from everyone else.  Really smart people were ostracized or the target of rumors and bullies; the artistically inclined or people who wore what made them feel great not the current trend were the people that were ridiculed.  Or to relate to the scriptures above, those that had calls on their lives, calls from God to stand out and away from things of the world, now they were really picked on.  The apostle Paul prior to his conversion was one of those people that picked on the early Christians, and was responsible for their deaths.  Ask yourself, are you really willing to yield to whatever God is asking of you and why not?  Because there is no one to believe in you, no one to encourage you.  Or is it because you think you're too young or some tradition says that its out of the norm?

In the scriptures above, it does not tell you why the disciples simply followed Jesus.  But it tells you that they were willing because there is no sense of hesitation noted here.  They willingly went with Christ.  I'm sure it was not easy walking with the Lord because so many people wanted to kill him--anything that is different and rubs people the wrong way is the accelerant to a volatile situation.  I find myself struggling daily with embracing the things God wants me to do, primarily because I do not want to stand out.  But I know better than that!  From the way that I dress to the way that I talk and think, I know I wasn't made to blend in.  I know that I have to take on the character of the Disciples and willingly go wherever God leads me.  Do you think you can reap the full benefits of God's plan for your life by simply ignoring Him, turning away from Him, or ignoring those things He put in you?  I'm sure you don't want to have a Jonah experience--feeling that you are in the pits of hell because of your refusal to do God's will.  It is much easier to give God His way.

"Anyone who wants to be my disciple must follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And the Father will honor anyone who serves me" John 12:26 NLT