TENSIONS
One of the great privileges of the role I serve in is to see and hear the stories and meet some of the people around the world who are living their lives of faith out of extravagant love for others, and obedience to Jesus. It not only humbles me, but also causes tension in my soul.
At times, it’s difficult to align the context of where I live and the things I take for granted with the great challenges and difficult contexts of so many around the world. But wherever we live, whatever our current realities, Jesus calls us to lay down our lives in love and obedience for the sake of others who do not yet know Him. What this looks like will be different for each one of us, but in doing so, we get to see and experience more of his Kingdom together.
CHOICES
Every day we make choices—big choices that will affect the rest of our lives and those around us, and small choices that don’t seem to make much difference. Yet these are choices we are required to make and every one of them leads to certain outcomes that we often don’t see immediately. Our modern world offers more choices in a day than we could ever adequately process.
There is a verse in Jeremiah that has always unsettled me. The prophet has been calling the people of Judah back to their covenant relationship with God for many years. And then he says this in verse 16:
This is what the Lord says:
“Stand at the crossroads and look;
ask for the ancient paths,
ask where the good way is, and walk in it,
and you will find rest for your souls.”
Jeremiah 6:16 (NIV)
What a great invitation from the Lord! To look to the ancient paths, asking for wisdom from the Lord as we make our choices and choose the right path to take. And the reward is to find rest for our souls. It would be nice if it ended there, but the verse has one more significant line in it that gives a rebuke for the response to this invitation… “But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’”
The prophet then responds with the word, “therefore,” and goes on to explain the consequences of the stubborn path they have chosen, ignoring the good way that God was offering.
DEFIANCE
We tend to want to go our own way, don’t we? Or maybe it’s just being lured in by the elusive and scintillating ways of the world. The many paths that are laid out in front of us, with many promises for many things, can often end up empty and meaningless.
Recently, I was reading through the book of Judges and again encountered the ominous statement, “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25 ESV). Israel longed for a king like the nations around them. Eventually they had many kings and it still didn’t turn out so well.
To follow Jesus is to recognize that He is not just our friend, but he is our King. He is the King of Kings. Do we walk in obedience and trust, or do we actually live our lives by what seems right in our own eyes? Even as I write that line it challenges me to hold up a mirror and ask the question.
SURRENDER
The value of “laying down our lives in love and obedience” is not just about choosing the right path, but it’s about the posture of our hearts as we choose not to go our own way, humbling ourselves as Jesus did—a very different kind of King. It’s the path and the posture of surrender that Jesus modeled for us in Luke 22:42: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”
Over the past years, Travis Jost has had to choose the path of surrender numerous times—from the original call to the nations, leaving behind family and the familiar things of the world of Kansas to venture into a whole new world in Burundi. Travis went from the surprising path of a personal medical crisis to the sudden passing of his dad and then, most recently, losing his mom this past year. Each incident involved another choice of which path to take. By his own admission, Travis didn’t always walk that space well or understand God’s timing. Yet he continued to faithfully surrender to God’s guidance.
In the pages ahead, you will read stories of surrender to Jesus. It’s a surrender that comes at a cost, is not always fruitful, and doesn’t always have a happy ending. But Jesus promises to be with us each step of the way, and He is doing more than we can see at any moment.
Let me forewarn you: this edition of Witness may stir tension in your soul. It already has in mine. But it’s also a beautiful kingdom invitation to live more fully as God has created us to live. And I pray that it will encourage you, and me, to surrender our lives, and to live more faithfully wherever God has placed us.
