Follow Me

While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. (Matthew 4:18-20)

Almost a year ago, I wrote “In the Footsteps of Jesus.” In that blog, I talked about the importance of walking in the footsteps of Jesus as our example the way we as children walk in our parent’s footsteps. I challenged us to “Focus on stepping in the prints Jesus has left especially for you, and be ready when he sends people and opportunities your way.”

I’ve been reflecting recently on my walk with Jesus. I have grown over the last couple of years - that’s for sure. I have, grudgingly I admit, started a Women’s Bible Study, and God has blessed it exponentially. We are in our sixth year together when, according to my pastor husband, most Bible Studies only last one year. We have grown to include ladies from three different states, and we just added a new member. All of the ladies in the group have also grown and stepped out of their comfort zones.

I have started taking classes towards becoming a Permanent Licensed Minister (this means I’ll be standing at the gate that leads to full ordination but am not going in) to learn more about the Bible on an academic level and write more effective blogs. This was Nikki’s idea for me, Lexi, and herself, and I am glad God spoke to her.

I have created a ministry where I send cards of encouragement to ladies in my church, family, and friends, and I receive as much encouragement from writing them as they do, especially when they send a message back with encouragement of their own for me.

I don’t mention these things to praise myself. In fact, if you read closely, you will see none of this was MY idea. It was ALL God. One of the biggest takeaways from my last ministerial class (Intro to the Old Testament) was that God had a plan from the beginning, and every step taken by believers and non-believers in the Bible was designed by God to move mankind through His plan to His ultimate goal of reconciliation.

This leads me to my current reflections on walking in Jesus’ footsteps.

In John 13:15 Jesus says, “For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.” What Jesus did was tell the men who would build the church to follow Him. That is what we should be doing, too.

Isaiah 43:1 says, “But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.”

We belong to God. We have been called by Him and given specific gifts to use for His glory and to win people back to Him. We have knowledge of God that needs to be shared. Jesus described us this way: “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden,” (Matthew 5:14). He has made us fishers of men, and the tide is “running.”

As I spoke about in “In the Footsteps of Jesus,” we have to first make sure we are walking with Christ – that we are studying the Bible, praying, learning, and practicing our faith. We are doing what Peter and Andrew were that morning - we are working. As we grow in God’s strength, power, and authority through the Holy Spirit, we need to then do what Jesus did and tell others to follow us as we lead them to Christ.

Following Christ is not a passive lifestyle. It is ACTION. Every single day. This morning in church the message was about love - specifically God’s love and showing it to the world. Love is a verb when used about God (a great book about this is Love Does by Bob Goff), and that means to show God’s love, we must be active.

As we walk in the footprints of Jesus, others can walk in ours. We say to others what Jesus said to the fishermen (“Follow me”), but instead of following it up with, “And I will make you fishers of men,” our lives, words, and the Holy Spirit shining out of us like the light of the world we are says, “Follow me, and I will show you the way to Christ.”

This is what we are called to do. This is the Great Commission. This is John 13:15 (“For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.”) in action.

AMEN