“Yes!”
The “Red-Letter” Words of Jesus
Day Six
The following day Jesus wanted to go to
Galilee, and He found Philip and said to him, "Follow Me." John 1:43 (NKJV)
I
grew up in San Diego, California. When I married my husband, Mike, I knew it
was only a matter of time before we’d move to the Midwest. Being from rural
Iowa, he wasn’t too crazy about big city life.
Eighteen
months later, in 1977, the Lord told us that we’d be moving within a few
months. To lighten the load, we had a garage sale in October. We sold most of
our furniture but kept the day-to-day household goods. When folks asked us
where and when we were moving, our response was, “We don’t know. God hasn’t
told us yet.”
He
did finally give us direction. We pulled out of town the end of February on our
way to Omaha, NE. We desired to follow God wherever He lead us. Of course, we
were intimately acquainted with Jesus and knew we could trust Him. We
considered Him our friend.
We
read in today’s scripture where Jesus found Philip and said to him, “Follow
Me.” Immediately he did. What made Philip leave everything to seek after a
stranger? We know he was from the same town as Andrew and Simon Peter (see
verse 1:44). Did they say something to him? Was there an anointing in Jesus' words which caused Philip to forsake all?
A
common practice during these Biblical times was for young men to study further under
Torah scholars once their formal education was completed. They were honored if
a Rabbi sought them out and said “Follow me.” Because of this custom Philip understood
completely what Jesus was asking of him. It meant becoming intimately
acquainted with the Teacher taking on His values, beliefs and characteristics.
Philip
didn’t hesitate to follow Jesus. To be honest, my emotions were a mess the day I
left my family and friends to move half way across the country but I’ve never
regretted obeying Him. Is He calling you to a new thing? I pray your response
is a resounding “Yes.”
Father, may I always say "Yes" to Jesus when He asks me to follow Him. May I be willing to go where He wants me to go no matter how difficult it may seem. In Jesus' name, Amen.
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