(Written during my travel “day”)
I’ve chosen a path less traveled. I’m sitting at a bus stop on Sumatra Island (I have no idea what town we are in), and we have been traveling for 67 hours. We were supposed to reach Medan today 10:00. Well, it’s 08:30 and we are at least 6 or 7 hours away. I’m going there to serve a group of people and an organization I have never met.
My walk with God is a daily choice. Some days I choose fandom; some day, discipleship. Right now, I’m not a huge fan of Christ. Also, because I made the decision to follow him on this trip, I don’t have much choice but to continue following right now, because my other option is to start walking with all my gear.
Being a follower of Christ is easy when he is making everything go my way and life is running smoothly. What about when life hits a few bumps, and then hits me like a ton of bricks, and I can’t seem to say that God is working things for my good? That’s when I have to make the choice either to be a fan of Christ, or a follower of Christ. Fans will leave when the going is tough. Followers will stick around to see what he has for them.
What does following mean? I’m glad you asked, but I don’t have an answer. I’m not even sure you could get a clear-cut answer from the Bible. You can read all of Jesus’ words, and the instructions of the writers of all the books, and still have no idea how to apply them to your life.
Besides, everyone is different in their walks (Everyone Loves Differently blog). For my dad, following is running a business, helping raise and school four kids, and coaching and loving three kids who have moved out of the house. For my mom, it’s staying home, raising and teaching those four kids, and being a cheerleader and friend for the other three. For one friend, it means moving to a new state and getting married. For another, it means raising her new son in another country. For yet another, it means going into a business career full-time. Everyone is a different follower.
For me, right now, following means sitting on a broken-down bus at an obscure stop in the middle of an island in Indonesia, on my way to work with people I don’t know with skills I may not even know I have yet. There are a lot of unknowns when following. But I’m choosing it anyway.
My name is Sarah Snyder, and I’m not a fan.
