Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” To another, Jesus said, “Follow me!” But he answered,
“Let me go back now, for, first, I want to bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Let the dead
bury their dead; as for you, leave them, and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
Another said to him, “I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say goodbye to my family.” And Jesus
said to him, “Whoever has put his hand to the plow, and looks back, is not fit for the kingdom of God.”
Reflect
It’s amazing how many excuses we can find to avoid following Jesus. We’ll claim that other needs
are more important or that God will be pleased with even a limited commitment or that Jesus’ call
to follow him isn’t really as radical as it seems. But in the depths of our hearts, we know that we
are fooling ourselves. Jesus wants us to give ourselves to him completely.
We have a tendency to hold back in following Jesus. We will follow him until it gets uncomfortable
or until it requires giving up something that brings us pleasure. Once we hit that wall, we look for
reasons why stopping where we are is good enough. We don’t push ourselves to give more, to
do more, to love more. But our God is a God of abundance, not a god of just enough.
Saint Francis of Assisi teaches us what it means to give ourselves to God fully. He famously
stripped naked in the town square to show his complete dependence on God. For the rest of
his life, he survived by begging. His entire life preached simplicity, discipleship, and reliance on
God. Let us follow his example.
© Copyright Bible Diary 2023