Sons of Thunder.
The roaring brothers—James and John—earn their booming name in Luke 9. Jesus sets out for Jerusalem, the city of kings. He sends a messenger ahead to a Samaritan village to prepare for His arrival.
The village refuses entrance.
The Sons of Thunder blast the town. They feel snubbed. Remembering Elijah who called down fire from heaven (2 Kings 1:10:12), they suggest that scorching the terrain will teach the village once and for all.
Jesus reminds them that His journey to Jerusalem isn’t a military endeavor, a triumphant march to conquer all who stand in the way.
Jesus’ road to Jerusalem is laden with humility and love.
The noise of James and John hides an important detail within the story I’ve never noticed before.
And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem (Luke 9:52-53).
The people allowed their own biases to get the best of them.
And I can’t help but wonder how much the Samaritans missed?
Time to…
Experience Jesus.
Be taught by Jesus.
Be healed by Jesus.
Be set free by Jesus.
Be redeemed by Jesus.
Be with Jesus.
If only they’d opened their village. Their homes. Their hearts. They would have realized they had been offered the greatest gift of all.
For generations after, stories could have been passed down.
On the way to Jerusalem…
Jesus stayed in our house.
Jesus taught us.
Jesus healed us.
Jesus freed us.
Jesus redeemed.
Jesus’s visit was the highlight of our family’s life, the defining moment of our entire village.
But instead, the village remains unnamed and unknown.
They missed their moment.
But they weren’t the only ones.
Luke goes on to tell us stories of others who miss their moment. They want to follow, but they have conditions. They are well meaning, but don’t understand the demands of the rabbi.
“I’ll follow you wherever you go,” one offers.
Jesus explains that the cost of incarnation is incalculable. Following Jesus is an unsettling and uncertain life that will strip you of the comforts you once knew.
“Follow me,” Jesus calls to another.
The man protests that he must first bury his father. Many Jews considered the obligation to bury one’s father as the most holy and binding duty of any son, greater than study of the law or Temple service.
But the demands of the kingdom are more critical.
Jesus instructs him to let the spiritually dead bury their own dead and enter real life—an uninhibited life of proclaiming the kingdom of God.
Still another claims he will follow but first must tell his family.
Jesus exposes the man’s reluctance by instructing the man not to turn back.
Each of the protests to following Jesus is well meaning or culturally justified.
But Jesus doesn’t accept their answers of “I can’t” and He doesn’t accept ours.
I can’t do that.
I can’t go there.
I can’t face that.
I can’t let go.
I can’t move forward.
I can’t leave this.
Are we willing to follow Jesus…
No matter what it costs?
No matter where it leads?
No matter how it ends?
Saying “Yes” to Jesus is the secret to how we don’t miss our moment—the divine moment God has designed for us since the beginning of time to glorify Him.
What is Jesus calling you to right now? What excuses are standing in the way?
Maybe, like me, one of your biggest excuses is this four-letter word:
FEAR.
Again and again in Scripture we’re called to: FEAR NOT. DO NOT BE AFRAID. DO NOT TREMBLE.
Yet how often does fear hold us back?
Through the pages of Scripture, we discover just how much Christ wants us to live a life marked by faith instead of fear:
“Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you.” —Isaiah 41:10 (HCSB)
“Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”
—Luke 12:32 (ERV)“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” —Psalm 27:1 (NRSV)
“Do not worry. Learn to pray about everything. Give thanks to God as you ask Him for what you need.” —Philippians 4:6 (NLV)
Through these and other passages, God awakens us to His relentless presence. He infuses us with a peace that shifts us from fear to faith. Instead of being held hostage by worry and fear, we can move forward and live courageous.
The Live Fearless: Adult Coloring Book provides an opportunity for you to:
• Spend time praying and reflecting to grow in your relationship with God
• Commit Bible passages to memory to strengthen your faith
• Marinate in the truth of God’s faithfulness
• Discover your creativity as you express your love for God and the Bible
• Strengthen relationships as you invite others to create alongside you
• Share your fun artistry with others as you display your work
My hope and prayer is that you’ll unleash the creative talents God has given you. As you color and sketch, whisper the words, commit them to memory, and grow in courage to live fearless.
If I can also flip this and say, how many villages have missed their moments because of my own bias? I recently faced such a challenge. I may have deprived others of their moments The decision to allow others into my personal space was determined by whether or not they posed a threat to carrying out my God given purpose. Sad thing is, as Christians, one of our purposes is to spread the Good News to all and to show others the reality of what it means to belong to the Christian kingdom and even though I knew this, fear controlled me. My bias attitude really caused a stink to my nostrils when I came across a review of R Warren’s Purpose Driven Life where the reviewer said: Be careful that your purpose does not become more important than Jesus. Not an easy question to ask oneself, how many people have you deprived of their moment with Jesus?
Love what you said this weekend, Margaret: “fear is an invitation to draw near”! That is definitely a thought worth sharing with others.
We have been going through one of the most difficult times as supporters/caregivers to our 28 year old son with multiple disabilities. And that is saying something. After months of struggle to hold up my end, I have decided to put it all down at the feet of Jesus. Anger about family and friends not helping, bitterness at the loss of the progress he had made and at our own increase in the sacrificial walk of a caregiver had left us feeling a huge sense of desperate isolation. Saturday, I read your last post on fear and faith and combined with my own private time with God I had reached a decision. I text 12 people that are friend/family that are people of faith and I ask them to be our prayer warriors and take on the battle with us against anxiety, for this fear our son is feeling to become a explosion of faith. That there would be peace instead of controlling fear, safety for himself and others. That the controlling fear would be replaced by a life that is a life of purpose and faith. A healing faith! I also said that we would gratefully receive the revelations of God given to them as they pray for our son.
Hi Margaret, just wanted to tell you I enjoy your posts very much AND as a fellow author to tell you I saw your Live Fearless Adult Coloring Book just tonight on the book rack at Publix in Sarasota, FL. What a great place to see it! I celebrate today all you are doing for God’s Kingdom. God bless you!
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