AVOID

There are some words that we need to eliminate from our vocabulary.  Some words just do not fit who we are and the goals we have for our lives

When I married Pam over 41 years ago, we decided to elimnate the word divorce from our vocabulary.  The word just did not fit our dream of living a marriage as the image of God in the world.  Eliminating the word divorce did not make our marriage work, but it eliminated a thought that could have easily undermined our marriage.

Jesus told his first followers that they would need to carry a cross if they intended to follow Him and be one of His disiples.  He warned them that the narrow path He was leading them down would involve the pain that always accompanies the delivery of real love.

"Now great multitudes went with Him. And He turned and said to them,  “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple."  Luke 14:25-27

To follow Jesus and to carry our cross we need to eliminate from our vocabulary the word  "avoid".   We simply cannot be what He calls us to be if we live by avoiding the cost of loving others.

People who are always trying to avoid things because they are hard or painful miss the narrow path Jesus walked.  They also miss the joy which that the narrow path leads us toward.

I remember telling Pam early in our relationship that I would never be a missionary.  I was absolutely convinced the missionary's life for me should be avoided if at all possible.  If I had avoided God's call to missions I would have lost so much that I now count as precious.  Thank God I eventually eliminated the word avoid when it came to God's call to missions!

If you are tempted to avoid things because they may be hard or painful, think again.  On the other side of the things we often avoid are the great adventures of life and love.

Discipleship and the word avoid just do not match.

Bud McCord

Abide International