Fear, Doubt, And Just Doing It

In reading the Gospel of Matthew, we find that Jesus called some of his disciples right from their jobs. Simon Peter and his brother, Andrew "immediately left their nets and followed him." (4:20) Even more radical, James and John "immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him." (4:22)

I wonder how many times the Holy Spirit has called me to act and I've tried to reason it away, to "pros and cons" it until it's clear that I shouldn't act. That is fear and doubt.

Recently I have noticed some headlines regarding a church plant in a major US city. I am encouraged by the excitement and enthusiasm coming from the leadership of this church. They seem to be empassioned for Christ and that is reflected in their internet presence. But they've been planning for two years. They have been spending money advertising through a variety of mediums, making sure the word is out, yet this church community is not living and ministering until a set date kicks in. The analogy of the fundraiser comes to mind. He blows off the little guys in search of the big fish, trying to catch that big check that will settle his organizations financial worries for years. Instead they continue to flounder, while a similar organization on the other side of the city regularly covers their own operating costs and more. So our friend the fundraiser places a phone call to his counterpart at the second organization, only to learn that they have built their own network of thousands of small fish the first fundraiser ignored.

Many of us say we want to do "big things" for God, and chances are we have the best of intentions. But in a society that values wise investing and mocks those who don't dilligently plan ahead, Christian Americans have mirrored their own economic, political and cultural fears and doubts onto their faith. Rather than say with Isaiah, "here I am! Send me" we say "God, I like your suggestion, let me run it through our five-year projections scale and see what the risks are going to be."

Why do we hesitate to jump when God tells us to jump? Fear. Fear that we'll fail. Fear that we won't appear rational. Doubt. Doubts that God will provide for us after asking us to do something radical. The World. How many times has God asked His children to give up the American Dream/Riches & Fame/etc to serve Him in some radical, irrational way?

The Cost. In the end, we're not willing to accept the cost of following Christ to the ends of the earth. And yet, we lift up those who have as champions of the faith. It seems we have failed to take Matthew 8 to heart:

The Cost of Following Jesus

Now when Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.”

It's ironic that Nike's slogan is more analogous to a Christ-following mindset than most of our us live on a daily basis.