I am a real estate agent. I was meeting my colleague off an exit on a major highway in Southwest Florida to visit the first solar-powered, 18,000 acre town. While I was leaving, my teammate told me not to be distracted on the phone while driving. Of course, I didn’t heed to her advice and made a call to a lady who wanted to list her home on the market.
While I was talking to her on the phone, I got more focused on the conversation than I did about turning off the correct exit. In fact, I didn’t realize I had missed the exit until my GPS was telling me to completely turn around. I was shocked when I looked, and it told me I would reach my destination 40 minutes later than originally planned
You see, I missed a vital exit. The next one was 15 miles north, and of course the quickest way back to my destination was to get back on the highway and drive another 15 miles south since it was directly off the highway. I was frustrated, distressed, and embarrassed that I was going to be late when I purposely left early to make it on time! Furthermore, it’s not the first time I missed this exit while being distracted!
You might imagine I would have learned my lesson before! But the world can be distracting, enticing us to lose focus on our final destination. In the spiritual world, we get lured by sin, chasing careers, and neglecting the most important journey: To follow Christ and obey His commandments.
Jesus is the exit. The Bible is our GPS–the roadmap we use to make it safely to where God wants us to be. Are you getting off the right exit or also being distracted by the world? If so, remember what Jesus said to his disciples in Matthew 4:19: “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
Moreover, Jesus had some strong words to his disciples in Matthew 16:24: “If anyone come after me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” Jesus was not recommending; rather, he was giving imperatives or commands to follow him and do exactly what he says.
Was Jesus being too harsh? Not at all. He knows that when we get distracted, enticed by sin, and become lost in this world, Satan the enemy of our souls will try to destroy us. That’s why it’s vital that we do not allow any distractions to hinder us from following Jesus with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. Do you agree? Please let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
Chad A. Damitz – Master of Divinity – The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Conform to Jesus 
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