Sunday am at Indy Metro I shared some concluding thoughts on our 4 month Nehemiah study that focused on a community of people so broken and weeping for a city they committed to doing whatever it took to see the restoration of a community bringing Glory to God. Throughout the entire book, we see Nehemiah to be a man who responded to the opportunities God brought to Him.

As I shared though having the opportunity isn’t enough- It requires us to take action, move, step forward, speak, respond, engage, love, to change…. It requires seizing opportunities that God brings to your door and being willing to live out the faith required to follow through.

So many Christians today have faith… but nothing about their lives require God to show up. No daily faith required in their conversations, schedule, finances, personal health, or with our children. There is so little risk in daily living for most American Christ followers… that you walk around really not knowing most of the time if God showed up or not. All the while asking isn’t there more?

And in my short journey with Christ I’ve experienced that one fully devoted humble, committed follower of Jesus Christ can have on the lives of people around them, their city, their neighbor, their office, their children, their generation, their classmates, their spouse, and their communities.

It’s sad though because I’ve observed so many churches completely tamed and neutralized what it means to be a fully committed follower of Christ. Our culture and many churches might as well have Jesus driving a mini-van, wearing his seatbelt focused on babysitting the kids in the car already. While the most accurate picture is prolly us in the back sitting on a milk crate holding on for dear life while Jesus drives a 350 HP 67 SS Chevelle with a bad paint job and an exhaust leak from launching train tracks chasing Satan hanging out the window yelling like Howard Dean.

Following Jesus has been turned into this safe, calculated, predictable and boring exercise. And inside most of us as Christ followers know something is missing don’t we? Maybe that is most the reason why most churches have always been absent of men? For men the image of following a neutered boring Jesus doesn’t exactly offer much appeal. A travesty too because I’m pretty certain American Christianity isn’t quite what the Scriptures describe.

For most Christians and seekers alike following Jesus can be summarized by the first song in this Johnny Cash movie clip. Puke! So my questions from the Sunday chat applies here too- What are you doing right now that if God for sure doesn’t show up you will be humiliated, embarrassed, ridiculed, exiled, or rejected?