Everyone in the South is well aware that the weather man has been wrong before. So I, like many others, approached last Tuesday like every other day. The morning routines were the same. The morning drive was the same. The kids were the same. And, then, snow began to fall.
Snow in the South creates chaos. All of a sudden we lose our ability to reason, function, and in some cases, breathe. What seemed to be a normal day now called for schools and businesses to run their 'hurry up offense.' Get home as soon as you can. No time for milk and bread. Get your car in drive and move on your way!
The problem is, when you don't practice your 'hurry up offense' (why should we? It's Georgia!) everybody does their own thing and runs in the wrong direction. Result: gridlock.
Now, back to the opening line. As I was driving home I noticed a man pushing his bike with his sleeping bag and essentials strapped to his back. Did I mention it was 20 degrees and snowing?
In our 60 second conversation I asked him, no, I told him to put his bike in my truck and I would take him as far as he needed to go. Rejected. He rejected my offer. A warm truck, out of the elements, saving the energy in his legs for another venture. And he said, "No thanks." What causes a man to decline such an invitation?
But consider how true this to be in our own lives? Running in circles. Chasing our dreams. Moving from relationship to relationship. Running our 'hurry up offense' in life trying to accomplish more, be approved by more, and accumulating more. Result: gridlock.
How does this happen? When the agenda of pride and selfish ambition becomes ultimate in our lives we begin taking credit for our successes and shifting blame for our failures. So, the guy pushing his bike maintained that his self-sufficient 'I can do this myself, I don't need your help, thanks but no thanks' attitude would somehow pay dividends for his accomplishments.
Don't you get it? It's not about what you can do. It's about what's already been done.
In the Gospels, Jesus extends two important invitations: Come to Me and Follow Me. He tells His followers to 'Come to Me' to find the rest that He alone can provide amidst a life of physical, emotional, and spiritual fatigue (Matthew 11:28-30). He bids us, 'Follow Me,' knowing that in Him is a path marked by Christ's sufficiency that will free us from the disillusion of needing to work harder to gain the acceptance and approval of some 'functional savior' (Luke 9:23). And Jesus can make such a bold claim and extend such an invitation because He alone is that Savior.
The invitation is there. Will you choose to work harder to earn your spot on the roster of the "Who's Who Among Those That Work Harder" or will you answer the call and accept the gift that's already been paid by way of Calvary's Cross?
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