follow me

What shall I do, Lord?

It's a good question with a significant historical precedent.

Saul of Tarsus, having been rather unceremoniously stopped in his tracks on the road to Damascus, asked two simple questions.

First, who are you, Lord?

And then what shall I do, Lord?

It's a question I'm asking every day. I'm at his service. Available. I report for duty each morning, and on through the course of a day. And that, on some form or another, is the question I'm always asking.

What do you want me to do? Where do you want me to go? Who do you want me to speak to? What do you want me to say? What are you wanting me to do in this situation?

That's the heart of our 'following Jesus'.

I was with some folk this evening and we had in interesting, and I think helpful, discussion along these lines. Does the summons to 'follow Jesus' involve for us (as it seemed to do for Simon and Andrew and James and John, to whom it was first addressed) ditching our job and leaving our homes and turning our back on a whole former pattern of life?

And if we don't do that, have we not really followed the Lord?

The answer, I hope, is obvious. Of course that's not the case.

The summons to follow is the challenge to ditch our agenda (rather than our job necessarily) and take up his. It's the call to respond to the Lord by saying to him simply 'Here I am, I'm entirely at your service now.'

That's the starting point. Starting to seek and to follow his agenda and share with him in his work.

And from there we start asking, OK, Lord - what do you want me to do?

Most of the time he's not going to call us away from the work that we're doing already. Though he might. And if he does, he goes about it wisely and he makes it pretty clear.

Most of the time he's happy to see us involved in the work that we're doing. Except he now says, Do what you're doing with me and for me. Which makes life suddenly more than a little interesting, and what once was merely routine becomes overnight an adventure.

That's what my days are like. What shall I do, Lord?

His agenda, not mine.

Today that took me along to the secondary school, to meet for a coffee and sort of 'touch base' with the Rector. Establishing dates for assemblies and services on through the course of the year. And making myself available there at the school should needs arise.

I try to be a source of real encouragement when I'm along at the schools. My guess is that those who hold down a job as the Head or as Rector - well, I figure they'll appreciate encouragement. It must be hard and demanding the work they do and I'm sure I don't know the half of it!

There was the midweek lunch-time service, of course, today, as well. And for those who were present it's always a special, significant time.

The afternoon was all tied up with meeting a couple of folk. Not least in connection with a day conference coming up this Saturday in a nearby congregation, where I'm to be the 'facilitator'.

I wanted to get a feel for the day to know how best to be handling the thing. And I'm conscious that this is a tough and important time for these folk with some difficult decisions to make. They're keen, I think, to draw on our experience and to have a bit of guidance as they tread across what I guess for them is strange and new terrain.

And in some ways for them as well at this time, it's Saul-of-Tarsus territory. What shall we do, Lord?

A whole new way of living opening up, as he takes them by the hand and says to them - Follow me.

Except the hand which he extends to them is my hand! And the privilege that I have this coming Saturday is, as one who's passed that way before, to be myself the one who gently says, Come, follow me.