Confounding our efforts in drawing folks to Jesus is quite frankly, ourselves.  Ouch! It’s true more than we would care to admit.  Our flesh, our rights, our own ideas about how things should be are much of the time a Christian repellent.  People wonder: what difference does it make to be a follower of Jesus?  To be honest, in the midst of church turmoil this thought crosses my mind occasionally.  What difference should it make? 

I have never met a Christian who didn’t judge; yet Jesus tells His followers, “Judge not.”  We usually have a tendency to hate someone, somewhere and more often than naught it’s someone we know.  Yet Scripture teaches that our love is to be superhuman, to the point that we are to love even our enemies. 

These and other instructions would be impressive if accomplished, right?  One pastor says he daily prays the prayer, “Lord, let me not make it harder for someone to know you today.”  That’s a good prayer!  Help me not to get in the way today.

Reliance is the key.  Jesus knew we were spiritual klutzes, so He gives us assistance.  To tap into that enormous power though, we must be willing to surrender.  That, my friend, is where the loop begins anew.  If you have trouble getting out of the way, it probably stems from a failure to surrender! 

Sometimes, giving up is actually winning.

– Dale