“As the time drew near for him to ascend to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. He sent messengers ahead to a Samaritan village to prepare for his arrival. But the people of the village did not welcome Jesus because he was on his way to Jerusalem. When James and John saw this, they said to Jesus, “Lord, should we call down fire from heaven to burn them up?” But Jesus turned and rebuked them. So they went on to another village. As they were walking along, someone said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.” He said to another person, “Come, follow me.” The man agreed, but he said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.” But Jesus told him, “Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God.” Another said, “Yes, Lord, I will follow you, but first let me say good-bye to my family.” But Jesus told him, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God (NLT).”
Luke 9:51-62 

As His disciples, we are all called to “go and preach the kingdom of God,” but often we seek to do so on our own terms. We may verbalize our willingness, but the motives in our hearts are not pure. We are to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Christ – no terms or conditions attached.

Today, pray that God will search our hearts and align them with His own. As we seek to be disciples on mission for Christ, ask God to strip our hearts of selfish desires and develop within us a willing attitude to serve those God sends along our path. Finally, pray that we will adopt an attitude of flexibility, allowing the Holy Spirit to have complete control.

Prayerfully,

Madison