Jesus' style blows the mind of our casual day-to-day walk. He turns the anticipated and the expected and the assumed way of doing life on its head. He fascinates me and really challenges me for his approach is so often backward; even to my assumed best thinking. He doesn't make my arguments right. His isn't the role to endorse my debates.
He does, however, make me acceptable to Father for I can't reach such a level of effective ministering to those in need on my own. It is our call to endorse his reach; not his call to endorse ours.
The strength of following the Jesus walk is that he breaks our complacency toward human suffering. He draws us into attentive action to the underdog. In doing so, he simultaneously reduces our smugness that we seem to find in doing church right. We are to do caring for others right.
Finally, the strength of following the Jesus walk is that we expect something productive to transpire. This has become a problem with the modern Christian mindset; too many basically expect nothing. If there is little anticipation that God can/is/will work in our midst, we are left to only to be poised for competitive argumentation of everyone's preferred pet peeve.
When we expect our faith to experience the working hand of God in our settings, joy and hope arise. This is a difference-maker. Even as parents, if we are trying to raise our kids to be good without leading them into the zones of community heartbreak and ruggedness, these young ones will find no place to engage in Holy Spirit activity.
May we cheer each other on as we, like Jesus did, walk into situations beyond our ability to control. At these holy points, may we see Jesus arise to the demonstrative level of help, hope, and happiness as he bears his Holy Spirit fruit from within us.
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