God? Maybe After I live a little..

Something hit me this morning as I was listening to a song.  It made me think about how teens approach God and even how I approached God as a teen and young man.  I said this:

"I'll follow God later after I've lived a little.  There's so much of life to experience first."

I've heard young adults say the same thing on a Christian radio station I listen to when they had a late night talk show for teens.  The teens would talk about how eventually they would settle down and then follow Christ.

I really had to think about that comment this morning.  I know from my studies that most Galilee fisherman died within 30 miles of their birth during Jesus' times.  When the disciples followed Christ, that commitment took them to the ends of the Earth.  Many disciples saw things they could never see on their own.  They lived more than a little!  They lived in such a way that could only be described as God directed.

We have taken Christianity in our generation and we've made it something we do when we settle down.  We have conveyed that message to our kids and we never should have!  Following Christ is vibrant, spontaneous, even dangerous.  Somehow, we have created a routine faith.  One that does not require you to actually follow God, but observe Him.  This teaching tells us that following Christ is for families with routine jobs and routine dreams, not for dreamers with ambitions to change the world.  It sounds like a cage to me.  If I thought being a Christian meant this, I may not be one.

I think when we are young, some actually prefer to go make mistakes.  There are so many temptations in our country that look like ultimate fun on the surface, but most of these temptations are empty and usually lead to only wanting more.  There is no lasting satisfaction in what they offer.  These temptations can lead to huge mistakes in our lives.  Some of those mistakes we pay for years later.

Jesus called us to much more than living for ourselves.  If you want to step outside of that cage, try this: Go on a mission trip.  Serve with your family in your community together.  Help someone you know only because you love God.  Feed the hungry on the street.  Teach your kids how to share Christ.  Study the Bible together.  Go to a conference. These are just a sample.  There's so much more.

There is fullness in being a Christian and I never would want to live any other way again.  A full life is knowing a lasting peace in who you are and who God is.  It is knowing that you are going to be all right no matter what happens as you live.  It is even understanding suffering and walking hand in hand with God as you face trials, experience joy and even shed tears.  

Unlike the misconceptions given in this church generation, following Christ is not for the faint of heart.  It is not a cage to walk into and shut the door.  Following Christ will take you places you could never go on your own.  You will feel greater joy than you would living for yourself and you will do things you could never imagine doing.  You will have a friend in God for this life and beyond.  I can't imagine living any other way.