A Follower or a Disciple?

The sun is at its highest and borders on unbearable.  I can feel the heat of the sun seeping through my clothing.  My lips are dry and all I taste is dust.  That same dust hangs in the air from the crowd moving in front of me.

I don’t know why I’ve been following this man around.  He came through Jericho a few weeks ago and was teaching and healing people.  I’ve never seen anything like it.  The leaders in the synagogue don’t teach like this.  They just give us rules and condemnation.  This man, they call him Jesus, even speaks against the Pharisees.  He claims to be the son of Man and I believe it.

Some of his teachings are encouraging.  He teaches that I should not be anxious.  God takes care of the birds and the flowers and He loves me so much more, so He will take care of my needs.  On the other side he teaches about repentance and perishing if I don’t.

Today was some of the hardest teachings I’ve ever heard.  He told us that if we don’t hate our family, our parents, and even our own lives, then we can’t be his disciples.  He said I have to bear my cross daily.  I have to renounce all that I have to be his disciple.
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