Tag Archives: practices

Discipleship and the Planet Pluto

There has been a lot in the news lately about the historic NASA mission of the New Horizon’s spacecraft to visit the planet Pluto. This grand piano sized satellite traveled faster than any other earth space craft at a speed of 30,800 miles per hour. At that fastest speed of any known space craft it still took New horizons 9.5 years to cover the 9 billion miles to the dwarf planet. The radio signal from New Horizons to earth to let us know that it had arrived and was functioning took 4 hours and 25 minutes to make the trip of 9 billion miles, and that signal was traveling at the speed of light.

Why all the statistics? Well, besides being a Jesus follower, I also am a nerd [and I mean that with all affection and positiveness.] It’s fascinating to me the amount of time, energy, money, and hard work that it took to achieve this historic achievement.

Something like this doesn’t happen over night. It takes serious commitment and time. To travel through space, endure extreme cold, and radiation, takes careful planning and resoluteness.

Nine and a half years, think about that. What are you committed to for nine and half years? Once New Horizons was launched and began it’s journey there was no turning back. There were all kinds of obstacles and deterrents, but the commitment to go was one way.

This mission to Pluto has brought to the surface, once again the discussion about colonizing the planet Mars. With our best technology and planning and commitment, it is said that if it can happen, those that go, are going with the knowledge that it is a one way trip. If they reach Mars, if they are able to build a sustainable living on Mars, there is no coming back. The technology simply doesn’t exist to get them back to earth. It is a lifetime commitment. Once they lift off, the world behind them, there is no turning back. It will be a one way trip into the unknown.

This led me to reflect on our discipleship journey. Following Jesus is all about commitment. Yet it seems that many in the post modern church have made commitment a dirty word. Why do we think that following Jesus is any less of a commitment than what it takes to build a space craft to travel nine billion miles? Why do we think that discipleship is a journey, in which we have all kinds of options, that our opinion is important, that we chose if it is convenient, and give attention to if we have nothing better to do?
Where do we see Jesus invite his disciples to focus on him for one hour a week and then spend the rest of the week critiquing whether they felt entertained, energized, equipped, and enabled to go about doing what they want to do the rest of the week?
In fact we see the exact opposite:
Matthew 16:24 “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”
Matthew 7:13-14 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
Luke 14:33 “In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.”
Matthew 22:37-39 “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Our Jesus is looking for people who are all in.

Our Jesus is looking for people who are all in. Our Jesus is calling people to give their all. Our Jesus expects 100% of us 100% of the time. Our Jesus is presuming commitment.
In a conversation that I with a disciple this week, we were sharing our ideas about trusting in Jesus rather than fighting for control in our lives. We ended our time by encouraging one another and reminding one another that there is a reason that most of the time the commitment to journey with Jesus is called the “practice of discipleship.” The mistakes, not withstanding, do not weaken our commitment on the journey to be more like Jesus today than we were yesterday.

Hillsong produced a song back in 2013 entitled “Christ is Enough” that uses the lyrics from an old hymn. “I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back. The world behind me, the cross before me, no turning back, no turning back.” Video for Christ Is Enough by Hill Song

We all need to be encouraged/challenged in our discipleship. I have decided to follow Jesus. The world behind us, the cross [dying to self] before us. No turning back, no turning back!

Suggested Dusty Discipleship practices…

1. Do a spiritual inventory, how is your commitment level to Jesus? Is there anything you are not doing that you should be doing?
2. Click the link above and listen to the song, Christ Is Enough, and talk with Jesus, reaffirm to Him that he is your reward and all that you will ever need.
3. Challenge “convenience” thinking in your life. Listen for the voice of the Holy Spirit in your life that commands your commitment and obedience.

As always, I look forward to journeying with you, as we are covered in the dust of our Rabbi, Jesus!

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Patience With Your Discipleship

Sunrise over mountainOne morning, I decided to get up early and watch the sun rise over the mountains. I was on retreat with some brothers in the faith, and as we rolled out of bed at 4:30 am, there was a mixture of excitement for how God would meet us, muffled by the cobb webs of lack of sleep. I arrived at my spot in the dark and sat down to spend time in silence and solitude. As the dark gave way to light, I was distracted by the thoughts of wishing the sun would come up, and break the top of the mountain that blocked my view. The sun was up, behind the mountain, so I could see all the landscape around me; but the sun still had not broken the mountain. I was growing more and more impatient. How much longer? How are the rest of the guys doing? My silence and solitude had turned into competing voices in my head. When I was finally able to quiet the voices long enough, a “still small voice” said to me “be patient with Me.” I had heard from God and I resolved myself to quiet my spirit and to be patient for the Sun/Son to break the mountain top. It finally happened. The sun broke the mountain top, beams of light spread around me, warming my face, like a soft touch. Then the small voice said, “Be patient with me, because I am patient with you.” I broke. I wept bitter tears of sorrow and grief for all the times that I had rushed my journey, seeking “spiritual growth” on my time table with what energy I had left over.

“Be patient with me, because I am patient with you.”

In our world, there are precious few moments of silence. Even less are moments of stillness and solitude. Most seek to avoid all three. Our world lies to us that when we are still, we are unproductive. When we are silent we risk being “not heard.” When we are alone, there is something wrong with us.
Jesus practiced all three silence, stillness, solitude. We are to practice all three. It takes being patient with ourselves. We can not be perfect at spiritual practices over night. Doing the hard work of discipleship takes practice and patience. The voices that tell us that we are not not “spiritual” enough, usually are the voice of then enemy trying to derail our discipleship journey.

If in your journey to be more like our Rabbi, Jesus, you find yourself frustrated with the pace, be patient with yourself, and be patient with Jesus, because Jesus is patient with you. You will find that the beauty of the journey [in silence, solitude, stillness] will deepen your intimacy and become the strength of your relationship with Jesus.

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