DFM Blog

I'm having a hard time blogging right now...because hubby and I are praying, reading, seeking, talking, crying (OK...I'm crying!), and burdened for how our family can live more RADICAL this year. We were up until way late last night joining God in allocating our finances more in line with the Gospel. At the end we realized GOD had brought to fruition the prayer we had for our personal (not tithe or church giving) missional giving a year ago!!! Isn't HE awesome?!?!?!

It is going to be hard for all of us to live true Faith in the midst of an overindulgent, self-obsessed, balanced, and comfortable culture...and that's not just the world! Our church families are swimming right along...and in many areas of my own life I have felt the strong current leading me along with it. But, my daily prayer is that I will follow God's path in His Word today and every breath I breathe!

Today I was reading in John 13:6-17.

One thing that really stood out to me was Peter's responses...oh boy...do they sound like me:) Peter and I are VERY passionate about loving Jesus. And we are ready (we think!!!) to follow wherever He leads. Yet, as we see is this passage, he flies from one place to the other trying to figure out how to respond to Jesus washing His feet.

First he is the picture of humility...oh Jesus you will never wash my feet! I am not worthy and could never allow or accept that. I'll just do it myself. Then, once Jesus tells Peter that unless He washed him, Peter can have no part of Him. Peter then jumps to the other side into overdrive! Oh Lord...then not just my feet...but my whole body!!! Jesus reigns him back and shows all the disciples that his desire is that they follow His example in servanthood. They are to humbly serve one another in following Christ.

I thought about that in my own life. I am totally like Peter! Many times, out of serious love for Jesus, take things and run with them! I used to think that God wants us to be "balanced" but He wants us to be BIBLICAL! Very different!

Jesus wasn't asking the disciples to be balanced between a lost and evil world and being holy...finding some kind of middle ground compromise. He wanted them to FOLLOW Him in RADICAL obedience! Is it balanced to get down on your hands and knees and wash feet? Um...NO! That was extreme which is why Peter, who loved Jesus, did not want Him to ever wash his dirty feet. That is NOT the role of Messiah to Peter...or the world.

Jesus was not balanced. He was seen as a madman. He was killed on a cross. People plotted his death ALL the time. He did miracles, raised the dead, and ascended into Heaven and is at the right hand of GOD! He is not some compromising balanced kind of Messiah!

I want to be BIBLICAL and not fling myself all over the place trying to either be falsely humble...or running way ahead of Jesus thinking I am super passionate. Jesus says to us..LISTEN to ME!!! READ my WORD!!! FOLLOW me!!! Stop chasing causes and chase ME...and in chasing ME you will find the narrow path of serving that changes the WORLD!

Let's let HIM define how following Him looks. Let's dive way down deep into His Word and See His face and listen to His voice and follow Him in crazy radical obedience. Let's stop living in our extremes...and throw balanced out of our vocabulary, and be BIBLICAL. I promise you...it won't get any more RADICAL than that!

As I have shared at numerous conferences...you CAN'T be in God's Word every single day and love Jesus passionately and NOT overflow. It's impossible! So, let's find our lives immersed in His Word! It's gonna get a little crazy around here:) I can't wait!