Struggling to Follow

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news."

As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea - for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you fish for people." And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.

They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God." But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!" And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him. They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, "What is this? A new teaching - with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him." At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee.
Mark 1:14-28

It was one of those days. After a terrible night's sleep I overslept and had to rush to appointments. Then we had to meet with the police to look at the vandalism that had been done to the church. It was heart breaking to see old things destroyed, and although limited damage, it was a hard day. Nothing worked right. It's hard to be a follower of Jesus on some days. In this wonderful book, illustrated above, Alexander reminds us all that "some days are like that even in Australia." We follow because we have a leader who loves us and cares for us even when the day is a disaster.

Today, as the sun gets ready to set, I thank God for the opportunity to follow. Some days we may trip and fall, some days we may stumble and break down, but all days we are blessed and loved. We are called and we are the beloved, no matter what befalls us.