Be a Follower - Tuesday, December 29 (Advent 2020)
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”
Matthew 16:24
Growing up, I was taught it is better to be a leader than a follower. I always struggled with that, the whole leading thing. I am not a natural leader; I have always been a follower.
As Christians are we ever really leaders?
We are all followers, followers of something. In my life, I can look at all the things I followed, and let me tell you what, I was a really good follower. I followed what I thought was popular, partying, smoking, drugs. I was a great follower, to the point where I almost all of myself over to my “leaders”, and they would have kept on taking.
But this following mentality I was shamed for, made it really easy for me to understand Jesus’ command to his disciples: “Follow me.” Now, I can handle that, I thought to myself as a read and reached for my next thing to follow. The drinking and drugs didn’t get me anywhere, but this Jesus guy, he really seems like a good person to follow - I’m in!
But if being a follower is so bad, why does Jesus ask us to do it? I figured that being the follower I was, did not put me in a position to question the leader, so I blindly got up, chucked my addiction, and said, “Okay, Jesus, you lead, I will follow.” And that is what I have been doing ever since, following a leader who knows where I am going at all times. He knows when I am going to mess up and when I will succeed, and all I have to do is trust and keep following.
When I began doing women’s ministry, I balked at the idea of leading other women. But then I realized, I am no leader - I am a follower. I am not leading these girls on campus. I am following a God who knows the beginning from the end. He knows the words of my mouth, their mouths, the meditations of our hearts, and He will lead.
I love this scenario because it takes out all of the what if’s. It takes out all the uncertainties, the requirements, the bad thoughts, the thoughts of not being worthy, because I am not the one leading. When we let Jesus lead, things will go according to His plans, because He made the plans, fulfills the plans, and we just have to follow.
I can follow, and I can show people how to follow. Contrary to what society says, following is better than leading.
Jesus, thank you for leading us. I pray that the words of my mouth and meditations of my heart will be pleasing to you. I ask you to continue to lead us at Sacred Ground - Haskell and Lutheran Indian Ministries, and that we would continue to follow you as our only leader into a territory that is unfamiliar to us but known to you. Amen.