Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6-7

Are you a worrier? Or maybe you have an anxious child? Although worry has always been part of the human experience (well, since the Fall in the Garden), our current digital lives have certainly escalated its breadth and intensity. Social media, in particular, has generated whole new levels of angst, including FOMO (fear of missing out) and FOBO (fear of better options), which can paralyze decision-making at every level—from a simple social outing to job pursuits to marriage. 

There have been numerous neurological studies about worry and anxiety that show worrying is like a well-worn path. The more we travel down that road, the wider, more familiar, and more natural that path becomes. It’s like when you have to run to the grocery store: you get in your car and drive your usual route without thinking—you just arrive, barely aware of the lefts and rights you took to get there. The more we worry, the more we’ll go down the path of worry. 

So, what can we do to break the anxious-thinking pattern? Well, according to the scientific research, our brains cannot simultaneously be anxious and thankful. In other words, worry and gratitude are mutually exclusive—they are incompatible. In fact, consistent gratitude not only reduces anxiety and depression, it also improves sleep quality, reduces pain, and releases negative emotions. Thankfulness brings peace.

But as is the case with many “recent scientific discoveries” related to biology, ecology, archeology, etc., God already told us that thousands of years ago. From Proverbs and Psalms through the gospels and epistles, the Bible directs us not to worry—and why. It’s Paul in his letter to the Philippians, though, that specifies how to combat anxiety: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7). Pray and be thankful, and peace will replace worry—they can’t exist at the same time.

So, let’s embrace thankfulness and forge some new mental pathways, shall we? Feeling worried? Going down the path of FOMO or FOBO? Stop and be grateful! Focus on the blessings, gifts, and positive aspects of the situation—and your life in general. Paving the road to peace may initially be challenging, especially if your habitual route is oft-traveled anxiety. But start casting your cares on Jesus (1 Peter 5:7) and be thankful in all things (1 Thessalonians 5:18)…and let gratitude become your new groove. 

Lord, may I cast my anxieties on You, choosing to be grateful in all things, to experience the peace of God that guards my heart and mind.

Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.

James 4:8a

My incredibly adorable dog Caroline has truly been a gift to me. She has brought immense joy to our home—and she’s taught me a lot, especially about being thankful. Caroline also rarely leaves my side. The first thing she does when she wakes up (after sneezing and rolling around like a goofball) is look for me. While I sit at my desk in my home office hour after hour, she is lying right next to me. If I’m on the couch in the evening, she’s at my feet. (She used to be on the couch with me, but I’ve recently banned that practice with our new furniture—much to my husband’s chagrin.) And when I walk to the bathroom, she follows, nudging the door open, when possible, to be sure she can see me. In the kitchen making lunch? She’s underfoot. She loves me (in the ways a dog can), stays close to me, keeps her eyes on me (when she’s not snoozing), and gets a little panicked if she can’t find me. My husband has taken to mimicking a could-be Caroline voice saying, “Mommy, mommy! I only need mommy!”

Recently, as I’ve been focusing on abiding more closely in the Lord, another lesson from Caroline bubbled up in my mind and spirit, connecting her clinginess to me with my own relationship with Jesus. So, I started asking myself some essential questions—let’s consider this together, shall we?

1. As soon as I open my eyes in the morning, do I seek the Lord?
2. While working and in meetings throughout the day, am I staying in God’s presence so to influence every thought, word, and action?
3. Do I consider Jesus sitting next to me on the couch as I hit play on that Netflix series?
4. Is God my refuge—my safe place—so that I know “the nearness of God is good for me” (Psalm 73:28)?
5. Would I panic if I find myself out of God’s presence—and do I immediately focus on setting my eyes on Him? And are we calmed in His presence?

Wow. If I clung to the Lord in the same way Caroline clings to me—oh, the sweet contentment and joy! So, let’s be like my rescue dog! Grateful every moment for being saved from darkness and death into glorious light and life (Ephesians 2:1-10; Colossians 3:15; James 1:17). Keeping our eyes on the One who is sovereign over our lives (Psalm 103:9; Romans 8:28). Being calmed and quieted by His love (Zephaniah 3:17). Drawing near to God to experience His nearness to us (James 4:8a). 

As Christians in the New Covenant, God is near—in fact, He dwells in us (John 14:23; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20)! Can’t much closer than that! But we must choose to abide, to surrender to the Lord’s presence and power in our lives. We must keep our eyes on Him at all times. Just like Caroline.

Lord, may I always abide in Your presence, knowing that my peace, hope, confidence, and every good gift comes only from You.

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Hebrews 10:24-25

What is a community? Generally speaking, it can be the city or area you live in. It could be your neighborhood, especially if you live in one of those planned developments designed to bring people together with common areas and activities. It could even describe the profession you are part of. These days, “community” is also defined very broadly as a group of people having a particular attribute in common (even if it’s immutable, and even if no other characteristic or value is shared). The forced isolation of the past few years combined with the nefarious plague of social media has brought together people (particularly kids and teens) desperate for connection, manifesting “communities” that are really destructive cultural contagions in disguise. 

There are myriad factors at play as to why, but our society is indeed starving for authentic community—a unified body of individuals. Now, you’re probably thinking that all the examples above can be defined as “unified bodies of individuals”—and this is a fact. But they all break down when the superficial aspects are removed to expose core values, needs, truth, and even motivation. Simple case in point: A housing development builds a pool and clubhouse to collect exorbitant HOA fees—they’re not all that concerned if residents actually use the facilities. And we’ve all seen how the “scientific community” has been at hardcore odds for the past several years (and it continues today)—there’s no real unity at all.

Followers of Jesus Christ have a built-in, solid foundation of common unity (community!)—we are unified in the Truth and bound together by the gospel of grace. Despite our respective pasts, we are made new creations in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17), and we wear a robe of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10). Whatever our family or country of origin, we are brothers and sisters—and children of God (1 John 3:1). No matter the level of melanin, we are all image-bearers of God enlivened by His breath (Genesis 1:27). 

Every Sunday, we join millions of other Christians around the world to pour out worship to the Lord, be sharpened by God’s Word, and encourage one another to walk in faith and Truth. Isn’t that amazing?! But we can’t isolate this experience to just Sundays and then jump back to living like the world Monday through Saturday. We have to create opportunities throughout the week to strengthen our bonds of unity and deepen this Kingdom community—especially as the god of this world gets more ferocious in his efforts to steal, kill, and destroy as his time gets short. The enemy’s (and culture’s) lies are coming at us fast and furiously. We must devote ourselves to God’s Word, to fellowship, to having meals together, and praying together (Acts 2:42). We’ve got to drop the nonessentials, focus on the gospel, and live in harmony with one another in accord with Jesus Christ—glorifying God with one voice (Romans 15:5-7). This is true community. And in the discord, divisiveness, and vitriol of this world, it’s more vital than ever that we hold fast to Christian unity and stand resolved on the firm foundation of Jesus Christ.

Lord, You and You alone are the solid foundation of true community. May we be intentional about creating common unity with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

But to me it is a very small thing that I may be examined by you, or by any human court…but the one who examines me is the Lord.

1 Corinthians 4:3-4

If you’ve been a follower of Christ for a while, and you’re regularly spending time in the Bible (hope you are!), then you’ve likely experienced the truth of Hebrews 4:12: For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. It’s weird to think of a book being “living and active”—but this isn’t just any book. It’s God’s breathed-out Word. (Take a look at Psalm 119 for all kinds of goodness about how we should view and handle what God has to say.)

With this “living” document, have you ever been reading verses you’ve studied in the past (maybe even numerous times—for years) only to see a phrase or word you’ve not seen before? It’s amazing how the Holy Spirit opens our eyes to additional Scriptural truths as our sanctification walk progresses. This happened to me the other night during a teaching from a visiting pastor to our church.

I’ve read Corinthians (both letters) numerous times over the past 25 years—like all 13 books from Paul, these are instructive, inspiring, and convicting. But the first 5 verses of 1 Corinthians, chapter 4 “suddenly” had new stuff in there. My Bible underlining and circling revealed my initial focus on being a trustworthy servant of Christ and steward of God’s truth. But the other night, the Holy Spirit opened up verses 3 and 4 in a powerful way.

Based on the power of the gospel, we are completely transformed. Paul and the other New Testament writers make it clear that the Great Exchange gives us a new identity in Christ. We become children of God, royal, holy, righteous (1 Peter 2:9; John 1:12; 2 Corinthians 5:21). And, with this understanding, Paul springboards into verse 3: “But to me it is a very small thing that I may be examined by you.” Paul is basically saying, “I am free of your opinion of me!” How amazing is this revelation? How much time do we spend worrying about what everyone else thinks about us? Our culture, in fact, is all about the likes and comments. We perform to accumulate the accolades of people we don’t even know. But, as followers of Jesus, we don’t have to care about that. At all. 

“The one who examines me is the Lord,” Paul emphasizes. The only One whose opinion matters is God! And we have already been defined by Him, remember? So, as believers, we go from men-pleasers to God-pleasers (Galatians 1:10; 1 Thessalonians 2:4). We are free to focus on walking according to God’s Word, doing life for His glory as ambassadors of the Kingdom. Free from the accusations—and acclaims—of others, as we follow Jesus on the Narrow Path against the cultural tide. 

Free. Following, trusting, and pleasing God—in confidence (Psalm 56:11; Psalm 118:6; Hebrews 13:6). The mocking of the world? The not-so-subtle eyerolls we get? The outright persecution because we follow the Lord’s commands? Friend, join me in standing stand firm on this beautiful fact: it’s a very small thing. 

Lord, I love You and trust You—what can man do to me? Help me live for You, the Audience of One (Colossians 3:23-24), knowing that the judgments, taunts, even accolades of this world are nothing.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

Romans 1:16

Have you been thinking about your calling as an everyday evangelist? I sure have. Even though I’ve been a follower of Jesus Christ for over 25 years, my go-to line (um, excuse) has been, “Well, I don’t have the gift of evangelism.” Yes, I stand firm on my faith. I love God’s Word and I walk in the direction of obedience—repenting when I miss the mark (because I do daily). Shining my light for God’s glory is my thing (Matthew 5:16). I know the reason for my hope (1 Peter 3:15)—I was blind, and now I see. I was dead, and now I am alive with Christ (Ephesians 2:1-10). I have my testimony and the Gospel tattooed on my body for everyone to see, for goodness’ sake! But to weave all this Truth into words during a videocall with coworkers? To find openings in daily conversation with acquaintances to share the Good News? Well, that’s a different story.

No matter when our respective surrendering to Jesus happened, we are called to evangelize. We don’t need a theology degree or be able to quote verse and address at will. And we certainly don’t need to have all the answers. We have OUR STORY—our reason for hope: We used to live like the world, but we encountered the Living God and were changed. As my pastor says, “We’ve been hit by the grace train, and nothing is the same.” So, you and I can do this thing. 

So, what does everyday evangelism look like for those of us less bold than the Apostle Paul—or even my friend Wendy? Let me explain what it could be by sharing a very recent example from my own life.

There’s a new guy working the overnight shift at my gym, so his last hours coincide to my early-morning workout time. Having introduced ourselves just after he started, we chat a little as I’m on my way in and out. He’s a sweet guy, and I’ve learned that he works 9pm to 6am at the gym, and he’s currently pursuing a degree in cybersecurity. Well, as I was leaving the gym the other day, I gave him my usual, “Have an awesome day, Shariff!” But instead of him responding, “You too, Julianne,” he made a comment to me that was a literal softball opening—like the Lord said, “Ok, girl, heeeeeeeere you go!” Shariff said to me, “Julianne, you have such a great smile—a joy that flows right out of you.” To this, I boldly responded, “Shariff—that’s the joy of the Lord! See, I was dead! Now I’m alive with Christ—and He has changed everything for me.”

But that’s not what I said. What I actually said was something deflective and dumb, like, “Well, aren’t most of us early-rising-gym-goers happy and friendly?” And as soon as I walked out the door, I did the proverbial forehead slap of regret. I had missed a perfect (and easy) opportunity to share the reason for my hope and joy! 

Friend, everyday evangelism can be simple. It’s a matter of being cognizant of these little moments as we walk through our days—at work, at the store, and, yes, at the gym. And because we have the resurrection power of the Holy Spirit living in us, it can be easy too! But we have to stay yielded to Him and ask for His help to loose our tongue. So, today, let’s do this. Let’s walk through the wide-open doors the Lord provides, so that we can take up the torch of our Great Commission.

Lord, I am not ashamed of the Gospel or of You. So, make me bold in the everyday moments of my day to give reason for my hope.

And He said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.

Mark 16:15

Have you ever met a great evangelist? Maybe in your lifetime you’ve had an opportunity to shake hands with a Billy-Graham-level Gospel-giver (maybe Billy Graham himself!). Even if only on TV or online, it’s always inspiring to experience the power of the life-changing message of salvation given with passion and clarity. My pastor, who launched our Bible-based church about a decade ago, noted in a recent sermon that more than 10,000 people have surrendered their lives to Jesus in that time! The Lord has given our pastor an enormous platform (and gifting), and the Holy Spirit is doing huge things through his leadership. It’s amazing to be part of this movement of God and breathtaking to view its impact firsthand—especially how the Gospel is intricately woven into every sermon, every gathering.

Of course, inspiration is no further away than our Bible—the go-to example being the Apostle Paul, who always did whatever it took to share the Gospel (1 Corinthians 9:22). You can read Acts, as well as the 13 books in the Bible written by him to learn more. 

“Oh,” you may be thinking, “that’s PAUL! I can’t be that bold.” Well, my friend Wendy would beg to differ. This woman has the gift of evangelism oozing out of her every pore. She goes out to dinner, and the server will hear about Jesus. Gas station coffee run before work? The three circles will no doubt be scrawled on a napkin for the cashier. Her immense enthusiasm and sheer joy to tell others about the free gift of salvation is truly astonishing. Again, you may be thinking, “Well, evangelism is her gift—that’s not mine.” Friend, I hear you…

It’s true that upon salvation, believers are gifted differently by the Holy Spirit (Romans 12:6-8; 1 Peter 4:10-11; 1 Corinthians 12:4-7). And we must each recognize how the Lord has equipped us to glorify Him and impact others for the Kingdom—and, of course, we must be using those gifts accordingly. That said, the Great Commission has been given to every Christian (Mark 16:15; Matthew 28:19-20). (I’m going to start preaching to myself now…you can listen if you want.)

If you have made Jesus your Lord and Savior, you are an evangelist. 

Yes, we’re to shine our light before others (Matthew 5:16). Yes, we are to show love to one another, so everyone will know we’re a Christian (John 13:35). But we’re also to open our mouth and share the Truth with words (Romans 10:17). In fact, if we’re living differently than the world, others should notice! And when they do, many will comment about it—or outright ask. In 1 Peter 3:15, we’re told to always be ready to tell others the reason for our hope! This is everyday evangelism—a readiness to share the why behind our set-apartness, our joy, our hope.

So, let me ask: Are you ready? Am I?

Lord, You have called me to be a disciple who makes disciples. Prepare my heart, mind, and mouth to share the eternity-changing Truth of Jesus.

“Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?

Exodus 15:11

There is a song we sing at my church (cowritten by one of our music ministers, along with Shane & Shane) called Wholly Yours (Ephesians 3:18-19)—you can listen to it here. The words are very powerful, for sure, but it made me start thinking even more about who God is…and who we are to be because of who He is—and what He’s done.

God is holy—and only God. In Hebrew, the word for holy is “godesh”, meaning “apartness, sacredness, or separateness”. It’s used over 400 times in the Old Testament to describe God as completely holy, sacred, set apart, and separate from His creation.¹ He is God, and we are not. That’s why the greatest offense to our Holy God is when people elevate anything or anyone (including ourselves) above Him.

As believers, we could literally spend all our prayer and worship time simply praising God for His “set-apartness”—for His glory, majesty, and greatness (1 Chronicles 29:11; Psalm 97:1-6; Psalm 145:5; Isaiah 6:3; Revelation 4:11). We can sing hymns of His holiness written throughout the generations, from Moses to the Puritans to Chris Tomlin. And we all need to do just that on a regular basis!

In addition to our response of praise to God for His holiness, there is a second response—a necessary outflow that comes from acknowledging this unfathomable attribute of God: a desire to be wholly His. Not only does the overwhelming majesty of His creation cause us to drop our jaws in awe and wonder, but His absolute above-all-ness ought to also drop us to our knees in submission from the sheer weight of His glory. 

See, we were created to be in union with Him. But, because of sin, that eternal communion was broken—we could no longer be in the presence of a perfectly holy God. Separation ensued, and death entered the world. But God. In order to reconcile Himself to us, God sent Jesus to live a perfectly holy life (that we couldn’t live), die the death we deserve (because of God’s perfect righteousness), and rise in victory to forever defeat sin and death. When we surrender to Jesus as Lord and Savior, we are wrapped in His robe of righteousness. In other words, when God looks at us, He sees the holiness of Jesus.

Jesus made a way of reconciliation. We were dead, and now we are alive in Christ. We were DEAD! Not “bad” made “good”…not merely “dirty” made “clean”…dead made alive. Now we are co-heirs with Christ, recipients of the boundless riches of God’s grace (Ephesians 2:1-10).

Through the holiness of Jesus, we are made holy in the eyes of our holy God. It’s truly mind-blowing. So, let me ask you this: If you have accepted this gift of forgiveness, mercy, and saving grace from our holy God, have you given yourself wholly to Him in response?

Lord, if I am holding back forgiveness, mercy, or any part of myself from You—whether idolatry of another, of stuff, or of self—I turn away from that now! I surrender wholly to You, for You are holy.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!  

Philippians 4:4

Did you know that joy is not a feeling? It is a choice—no matter our circumstances. This is actually true for Christians and non-Christians alike. But here, I want to speak to believers, because we have a great advantage in leading a joy-filled life. Maintaining joy is about staying focused on just one thing (well, one Person): the Lord. Now, this singular focus is multifaceted. And we can consider so many aspects of our astounding God.

First and foremost, there’s the joy of our salvation. We were dead! Now we’re alive with Christ (Romans 6; Ephesians 2; Colossians 2)! We are new creations—the old has passed, and the new has come (2 Corinthians 5:17)! Our sins (past, present, and future) have been forgiven. We are free (Galatians 5:1). And there is nothing that this world, other people, or even Satan himself can do to take this away from us (Romans 8:31-39)!

Next, we can look back on everything the Lord has done for us—praising His name and boasting in Him for all the times He answered us, rescued us, protected us (Psalm 34:1-9). There is no doubt that each one of us can glance in the rearview mirror and see where and when God’s hand guided, shielded, and flat-out miraculously intervened. We must rehearse these times of providence.

Moreover, it’s an act of obedience to be joyful. The Apostle Paul says it pretty clearly in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.” And he says it again (twice) when writing to the Philippians: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!” [3:1; 4:4] You can read these commands throughout the Bible, especially in the Psalms (check it out these few: Psalm 5:11

Psalm 33:1-5, Psalm 97:12)

But the best part about choosing joy amid any and every circumstance? It just makes the minutes, hours, days, weeks, years better. Even in the midst of suffering, pain, and sorrow—because these situations will happen. (Life is hard—even the Christian life.) Through it all, we do have a choice. We can be bitter, gripey, complaining, anxious. Or we can keep our eyes on the Lord—His amazing grace, His mind-blowing blessings, His incomparable glory—and choose joy. Which will you choose today?

Lord, despite my circumstances and even within my pain, You are Sovereign, and I am saved. So today I choose joy.

Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, set your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written: “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

1 Peter 1:13-16

The world is insane. It’s Clownworld—not like a funny clown, but those terrifying ones. Can I get a witness? I have no social media and I try not to watch any news. But when I go to the gym each morning, all the cardio machines are facing an end-to-end row of huge TVs, which endlessly assault the eyes (and ears if you plug in) with lie after lie after lie. (Don’t care which channel you choose—from the plethora of “news” channels to the “innocent” HGTV and “harmless” TLC.) Although my headphones are filling my ears with a sermon or podcast, with my head down or eyes closed, I can’t help but glance up and around. No matter the TV in question, there are literal lies (of commission)—straight out falsehoods being peddled as truth. Lies of omission, where the talking heads leave out 95% of a story to hype an alarming headline. And there’s all the gaslighting…this is a term that describes when someone accuses another of some malicious activity that they themselves are actually doing—usually for the purpose of inciting doubt and insanity. Narratives are pushed—hard. Social, cultural, political. There are shows that “normalize” (and celebrate) children being mutilated in the name of activism. Drunkenness and serial hookups are glamorized. Even our favorite home makeover shows are spun with fabrications (even if we don’t want to admit it). Newscasters are the worst, especially with the current penchant for the love of crisis. Everything is a threat and a crisis. And the favorite buzzword of all: “existential” (usually paired with either “threat” or “crisis”). In other words, whatever the context, the issue-du-jour is a threat to our very existence (think pizza ovens and gas stoves). Fear pushers are everywhere.

Even our own sources of seemingly innocuous info are feeding us lies and fear and crisis. Case in point: It’s August in Florida, so it’s hot—no shocker there. But apparently, I should be melting, because at 9pm last night I walked out to the porch to a pleasant evening of about 85 degrees. But when my hubby opened his weather app, it trumpeted to him, “Warning! Warning! Real feel is 116 degrees! Heat advisory! Go inside or you’ll die!” (OK, maybe it didn’t say that last part.) But seriously. I was STANDING OUTSIDE. It did NOT “really feel” like 116 degrees. 

This kind of craziness is not new. In about 740 BC, the prophet Isaiah warned about it: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and shrewd in their own sight! Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine, and valiant men in mixing strong drink, who acquit the guilty for a bribe, and deprive the innocent of his right!” (CNN per Isaiah 5:20-23) And in the New Testament, Paul wrote to Timothy about what the world has to offer: “For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, slanderers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness although they have denied its power” (2 Timothy 3: 1-5).

So, how do we, as followers of Jesus Christ, live in this world without succumbing to all the insanity? The Bible has a lot of instruction for this—in all 66 books. Here are just a few ways. We must be in the world, but not of it (John 17:14-15). Because we belong to a Holy God, we are to “be holy as He is holy” (1 Peter 1:13-16). We cannot conform to the cultural patterns of this world, but we’re to transform our lives by renewing our minds through God’s Word (Romans 12:2). We must stay surrendered daily to Jesus as the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6). And we’re to unreservedly live for our perfected future—the consummation of our salvation and full realization of our sanctification at our glorification. That’s a fancy way of saying, “Let’s keep our eyes focused on our ultimate destination, when we are present with the Lord without the enemy, the world, or our fleshly desires hindering us.”  (Colossians 3:2; 2 Corinthians 4:18; Matthew 16:23; Psalm 1)

Now, more than ever in my lifetime, we have to keep our eyes, mind, and heart on the Lord. The alternative is just plain crazy.

Lord, as the world continues to get darker, help me stay focused on You and Your Word, looking ahead in confident hope.

Now He (Jesus) also spoke a parable to them: “A person who is blind cannot guide another who is blind, can he? Will they not both fall into a pit?

Luke 6:39

I gave up social media a long time ago (a very odd choice for someone who spends the work week doing marketing activities). Sure, I miss out on photos and news posted by friends and family, but I’m also not being force-fed a bunch of garbage on the daily—taking up the space in my mind that should be focusing on all things true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8). Plus, that visceral, addictive need to check for likes/reactions/posts is just not on my radar anymore. (If you find yourself waking up and reaching for your phone, glancing at every notification even when you’re in a conversation, and being distracted by said pings while driving, you may want to consider a social media hiatus. Just saying.) It’s been almost four years for me…and I can say, I’m definitely a lot happier.

So, in that regard, I don’t “follow” people anymore. And as I was reading Luke’s gospel, a brief statement from Jesus got me thinking about the whole idea of following—whether it’s social media, podcasts, books, or pulpits. His message in chapter 6, verse 39 was clear: If someone who is blind to Truth follows someone else who is blind to Truth, it won’t end well for either of them. (He was referring to the Pharisees, because He actually calls them “blind guides” to His disciples in Matthew 15:14—and to their faces in Matthew 23.) The parable in Luke 6 was part of a longer message from Jesus about what it means to call Him Lord, which held all kinds of counterculture (and counter-religious) exhortations that were likely very shocking to His listeners. He was redefining what it means to love others. He stated plainly what it looks like to love others (even our enemies) like God loves us, and he warned not take on the judgmental attitude of religiosity. And following Him, He said, meant doing what He said—which sets your life on a solid foundation (vs 46-49).

For us today, three significant “following” considerations come out of this:

1. We must discern if the people and things we follow are blind. Is it Truth, solidly based on God’s Word? Are the messages that spring from those sources for our good and God’s glory? If the people we admire and follow (from influencers to pastors) are blind to Biblical Truth, we’re headed for a great fall.
2. We’ve got to know the Truth for ourselves, so we’re not blind! Stating the obvious, a blind person doesn’t know they’re following another blind person. We’ve got to know Truth by knowing God’s Word to recognize that we’re following lies.
3. If we’re following Jesus, we’ll always be going in the right direction. Of all the people and things of this world (even pastors and theologians), we have to start by following the only One who’ll never lead us astray—Jesus. Being a follower of Jesus keeps us moving in His direction. Through the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit, we walk with the Lord in the direction of holiness and righteousness in response to our salvation. 

It’s so tempting to follow hard after the popular blind guides of today’s culture. The road is wide and filled with enticing, shiny things. But it only leads to the pit. Following Jesus is a much narrower path and requires trudging through crowds moving in the opposite direction. But this leads to true satisfaction, joy, and life. As my pastor often says, “You can’t be a follower of someone and stand still.” So, friend, who/what are you following—and where’s it leading you?

Jesus, help me abandon chasing after the things of this world that promise life but only lead to destruction—and may I follow hard after You.