How Do I Follow Jesus

Summary

Many believers feel frustrated and under-resourced in their spiritual growth, unsure of salvation, and lacking joy. The author relates to this struggle from his own early Christian experience, when emphasis was placed on performance instead of grace. Spiritual transformation takes time, imperfect but noticeable progress through Christ-centered, Spirit-empowered living. He offers two free discipleship resources designed to guide believers daily toward spiritual maturity and help them impact others for God’s glory.

When Frustration Fills the Workweek

It is Monday, and my wife is frustrated. The same could be said for Tuesday through Friday, with a weekend hangover. The frustrater is her job. Her company assigns cases for her to review without adequate training.

Some of her fellow workers have recently quit because every gram of enjoyment had been squeezed from their jobs. The performance expectations are high, while the empowering resources are meager.

How Do I Follow Jesus?

Many Christians are also daily frustrated. The Earth has made many orbits around the sun since they invited Jesus to be their Lord and Savior. Their initial excitement has long since evaporated. They aren’t certain that they are saved, haven’t progressed very far, and experience very little joy in their faith.  

A Personal Story of Performance-Based Faith

I grew up in a church that emphasized decisions for Christ but provided little to no guidance after that. Empowering resources were nonexistent. A Christian was defined, not by love for God and others, but by a list of behaviors from which they must refrain. The performance expectations were high, while the empowering resources were meager.

Grace, Not Performance

In my late teens, I had no assurance of salvation, joy, or progress in the faith. Transformed relationships as a result of my “Christian” faith were completely missing in my life. The gospel to me called for a confusing mixture of faith in Christ and my own performance.

Jesus did what He could, but I thought I had to add to it by how I lived. Of course, that is a misunderstanding of the "by grace through faith" gospel. Allow me to give some directions for the Christian road ahead that would have helped me, and I trust will help you.

Spiritual Growth Is a Lifelong Journey

I have spent thousands of hours preparing resources to empower you. I expect that you will become progressively more like Jesus, but it won’t be an overnight transformation.

It will be more like five steps forward, three steps back, repeated for the rest of your life. It is unrealistic to expect perfection in myself or you on this side of glory, but I fully expect positive Jesus-like changes in our lives that others notice.

A Christ-Centered, Spirit-Empowered Life

The short version is that we must lead Christ-centered lives (John 15:5), empowered by the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8, Ephesians 5:18) to glorify our Father in Heaven (Matthew 5:16). How do we do that?

Resources to Help You Grow

Much of what I have learned about following Jesus is summarized in my free, digital book, His Power for Your Weakness: 260 Steps Toward Spiritual Strength. I suggest using it as a devotional for 260 days. Read a chapter in the New Testament each day as the book suggests. Write one to three life applications daily from your reading.

As of this writing, God has used this book in Africa (in Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia) to teach 16,725 people to follow Jesus and lead 6,830 of them to salvation in Him.

Continuing the Journey

When you finish His Power, you can also benefit by working through another free, digital book, 31 Steps Toward Spiritual Maturity. This book was written to help Christians learn to live Christ-centered, Holy Spirit-empowered, Father-glorying lives before I wrote His Power for Your Weakness.  May God bless you and make you a blessing to countless people!

Photo: Image Creator (microsoft.com)