1st Question

I recently posed 3 questions for you to think on. 

1. Who are you following?
2. Who are you connecting with?
3. Who are you collecting?

Let's spend a little time looking at the first question.  Who are you following?  I asked you to think of your mentors and people you admire and look up to. Who came to mind?  Did your mind automatically go to women of the Bible such as Ruth and Esther?  Did you think of the leaders on your job, in your school, in your church?  The president, governor, television personalities?  According to Forbes magazine, Jennifer Lopez is the "World's Most Influential Celebrity".  Is she someone you're following, or perhaps others on the list, like Oprah, Ryan Seacrest or Lady Gaga. 

In the world of social media, following someone has various meanings. Of course if you are following my blog, you'll get updates of new posts. If I'm following someone on Twitter, I receive updates from that person or group. Perhaps it means that I'm interested in what they are doing. It can mean that I admire what they do, and I want to learn more about them.  However for this article, consider following as in following someone while they're walking or driving.  By following them, I am walking in their path, and doing what they do.

My life will mirror the life of who I am following.  My pattern of speech may change, my dress and attitude will also go through changes to be more like who I am following.  This can be a positive change or a negative one.  Following popular culture may have me dressing in low-cut tops, tight bottoms and not having a concern for how my actions affect those around me.  Following my neighbors may lead to a "keeping up with the Jones's" attitude.  My goals will revolve around making my home a show place, traveling to the "in" restaurants and vacation destinations.  If I find myself following current political leaders, I will begin to stop believing in the sanctity of marriage and the home, allowing humanistic views to influence my every choice.  However if I look to find a positive mentor and example to follow, my life will take a different course.

According to dictionary.com, a mentor is a wise or trusted adviser or guide.  A mentor can be someone we follow to learn from.  King Rehoboam had a great set of mentors in I Kings 12.  These elders had stood before his father, the wise King Solomon and provided good, sound advice (vs. 6).  However King Rehoboam chose to follow his peers, young men who had grown up with him.  We can look at others in the Bible as well as examples of good mentoring:  Barnabas and Paul, Paul and Timothy, Naomi and Ruth, Elijah and Elisha, Moses and Joshua, Deborah and Barak.  Older women are to be mentors for younger women in the local church (Titus 2).  The worthy woman of Proverbs 31 shows an ideal woman.

Do you have a good Christian to follow in your daily walk?  I have been blessed by godly Christian parents who gave me examples to follow.  There have been people along the way whom I can look up to, admire and follow as well.  Paul in I Corinthians 11:1 said "Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ."  Again in Ephesians 5:1 "Therefore be imitators of God as dear children."  The one we are to ultimately follow is Christ. 

In my business, I have women who have been extremely successful, and if I follow their examples, I know that success can be mine as well.  In following godly women by modeling their love of their husbands and love of their children (Titus 2:4) I can grow more successful as a better wife and mother.  However, following Christ above all others will give me rewards above anything I could ever imagine (Ephesians 3:20).  Because I know that ultimate success is living my life and going to heaven following Christ is my highest priority. 

Commitments

Our family loves the PBS television show Arthur.  It's just a classic!  The show has been around for a long time, has  great story lines and memorable episodes (DW's snowball for instance).  Perhaps it's "The Brady Bunch" for my kid's generation?  Anyway, our youngest was watching the one about having a TV free week.  After the characters had a big school assembly promoting TV free week, and were promised a prize and signed their names, one character had a melt-down because he didn't realize that he was actually committed to not watch television! 

I wonder sometimes how often we forget our commitments and promises.  Big and small.  We forget appointments, we forget our diets or exercise, sometimes we forget our wedding vows and sometimes we forget the day we became a Christian.  We're excited in the beginning, lots of attention, we get caught up in that.  With marriage, there is the wedding planning, the dress, reception, honeymoon, first home, etc.  After the party is over, we have a marriage that needs more work than the wedding ever did.  Even with becoming a parent, there is so much hoopla that it's easy to get caught up in that, but then the sleepless nights come, or the colicy baby.  We get excited about a special deal at the gym, but then comes the fact that we have to go and do the workout. 

Joshua told the Israelites in Joshua 24:15 to "choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve ... but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."  The Israelite people in the very next verse said "Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD to serve other gods." but it didn't take very long for them to forget that commitment. 

Daniel purposed in his heart (Daniel 1:8) to not defile himself.  Though faced with favor, fine food and drink, power and probably much more, Daniel is shown to have remained strong in that commitment.  In the book of Joel, the Lord said to His people "Turn to Me with all your heart.  Rend your heart, and not your garments"  (Joel 2:12-13).  God wants our commitment.   He wants all of us, not an outward show, but every ounce of us.

Jesus warned that "no one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."  (Luke 9:62).  That looking back is showing a desire for the old life.  Perhaps we're looking back towards those single days or the days when there were no children, or even the days when we could eat whatever we wanted and not gain an ounce.  Earlier in Luke 9:23, Jesus says that we are to deny ourselves and take up our cross daily, following Christ.  This is that daily commitment.  Before our feet hit the floor in the morning, we are commited to live Christ-like, we are commited to our husbands and children. 

What pulls you from your commitments? For the character in the Arthur cartoon, it was the fact that he was going to miss a brand new Bionic Bunny show on television. For some it might be the lure of chocolate cake, or perhaps a flattering tongue of a coworker or the advice of someone that the children will be fine without your daily influence. 

Our eyes must remain on the goal.  For the characters in Arthur, it was a gold medal, shaped like a television.  I have a goal poster hanging on my office wall of things I would like to accomplish in the next few months and year.  Goals for our family may be short term such as paying off debt, getting good grades, etc.  As a Christian, our focus is to "press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."  Philippians 3:14.  True success (as said by Glenn & Cindy Colley) is living our lives and going to heaven. 


What pulls you from your goal?  For the character in the Arthur cartoon, it was the fact that he was going to miss a brand new Bionic Bunny show on television.  For some it might be the lure of chocolate cake, or perhaps a flattering tongue of a coworker or the advice of someone that the children will be fine without your daily influence. 

Colossians 3:23 reminds us "whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men."  Whatever actions were are doing in our lives needs to show our love, our fear, our respect and our service to God.  Our daily actions with our husband, children, friends, strangers, show our commitment as a Christian, wife, mother. 

The eternal commitment Christ made for us is found in Romans 8:38-39.  "For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things presnet nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."    Hebrews 13:5-6 "For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."  So we may boldly say:  "The Lord is my helper; I will not fear.  What can man do to me?"

Jesus is not going to back out of His commitment.  Are we?