Resolving The New Year

Certain memories are locked in our brains. I was still a new Christian when I began my first year of college. I remember meeting another student who recognized my naïveté and enthusiasm for Jesus. We immediately gathered a few others together and began talking about the Bible. One evening, before returning to our dorms, one of the more seasoned Christians asked if we had heard that the Apostle John might still be alive. He pointed us to John chapter 21, and we agreed to discuss this more next week.

Then Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the disciple who sat close to Jesus at the Last Supper and had asked him, "Lord, who is the one that will betray you?") So when Peter saw him, he asked Jesus, "What's going to happen to him?"

Jesus replied, "If I decide to let him live until I return, what concern is that of yours? You must still keep on following me!"

So the rumor started to circulate among the believers that this disciple wasn't going to die. But Jesus never said that, he only said, "If I let him live until I return, what concern is that of yours?" (John 21:20-23, TPT)

A quick read of this passage surfaces both the humor of my fellow student and Jesus' point. Each new year, new day, and new hour, our focus should not be on what someone else is doing but on following Jesus. The world today is flooded with the reports of what others are doing. Sometimes, following Jesus means to join in, to help, to support, or to encourage. Other times, following Jesus means we must pause and pray—listening to the Holy Spirit and obeying. There is no one-size-fits-all way to follow Jesus. Jesus made you one purpose and for purpose.

Someone once told me, "If you are still here, God is not done with you yet." As a new year begins, know this: God is not done with you yet! Following Jesus means that we need to be immersed in His Word, the Bible, surrounded by His people, the church, and to live sent on Jesus' mission—making disciples who make disciples. How has God used your strengths, talents, experiences, or relationships for His kingdom in the past year? How have you followed Jesus? How might you invite others to join you as you follow Jesus?

As we consider how the new year will differ from the last, what might Jesus say to our worries, fears, faults, or hopes? Might he look at all our concerns and say, "What is that to you? As for you, FOLLOW ME."