Jesus said, "If anyone will come after me let him deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow me." (Luke 9:23,24)
Many things are not fun but are necessary if we are to fully follow the Lord Jesus:
1. Jesus wants us to apologize and seek forgiveness both from God and from those we have sinned against through His power. (Mt. 5:23,24)
2. Jesus wants us to withstand criticism, false accusations, and misunderstandings for His purposes with His support. (Mt. 5:11,12)
3. Jesus wants us to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God’s plans, power and perspectives with His Spirit. (Jn 16:13)
4. Jesus wants us to love other people as He loves us with His agape. (John 13:34,35 & I Cor. 13:4-7)
5. Jesus wants us to not give into the temptation to take revenge on those who hurt us because of His gracious forgiveness. (Matt. 6:12,13)
6. Jesus wants us to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness even during times of anxiety, shortage of provision and hardship with His faith. (Matt. 6:33,34)
7. Jesus wants us to discipline ourselves for the purpose of godliness even when we feel discouraged, frustrated or emotionally spent with His Spirit’s promises. (2 Tim. 1:7)
8. Jesus wants us to give generously to help fulfill His great commission (Mt. 28:18-20) even when we are unsure of our financial security because of His promises to provide. (Phil 4:19)
9. Jesus wants us to confess our sins of commission, omission, disposition and wrong assumptions to be cleansed of all unrighteousness. (I John 1:9)
10. Jesus wants us to serve others with a humble mind looking not just for our own interests but for the concerns of others with His attitude. (Phil. 2:1-5)
11. Jesus wants us to be courageous in the midst of attacks with His strength. (John 16:33)
12. Jesus wants us to avoid being resentful, jealous, bitter or angry because of His resilience. (Heb. 12:1-3)
13. Jesus wants us to follow God’s priorities rather than our own because He said, "Not as I will, but let Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.""(Mt. 6:10)
14. Jesus wants us to live a balanced Godly life as He resisted all tendencies of extremism with the Spirit’s guidance. (Jn 14:26,27)
15. Jesus wants us to persevere even when we are tired, suffering and emotionally burned out because He empowers us. (Acts 1:8)
16. Jesus wants us to be humble in success and thankful in adversity because of His example of submission to God’s sovereignty. (Rom. 11:33-36)
17. Jesus wants us to mature in all aspects of life as He did. (Lk 2:52)
18. Jesus wants us to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Him because He commanded us to. (Lk 9:23,24)
19. Jesus wants us to give of our best to God in all aspects of life because He gave 100% of Himself for the Lord’s will. (Jn.20:21)
20. Jesus wants us to trust & obey God even if we are confused because He did amidst betrayals. (Jn 15:18)
21. Jesus wants us to meditate on the word of God to achieve His success and prosperity. (Josh 1:8,9)
22. Jesus wants us to love the Lord God with ALL our heart, soul, strength and mind and our neighbor as ourselves because He commanded us to. (Luke 10:27)
23. Jesus wants us to worship the Lord and have no other idols because He completely followed the ten commandments. (Ex 20)
24. Jesus wants us to confront sin among the religious leaders because He did so with the Pharisees. (Luke 15:16)
25. Jesus wants us to avoid any tendency to become too traditional, too legalistic, too humanistic or too spiritistic in our perspectives or ministries because He kept His eyes on His goals. (John 17:4)
26. Jesus wants us to turn tragedies into triumphs with God’s supernatural deliverance because He did. (Jn 20:30)
27. Jesus wants us to accomplish 100% of the will of God despite our human frailties and sinful human nature. (John 15:16)
28. Jesus wants us to avoid comparing ourselves with others allowing God to judge impartially, factually and completely. (Mt. 7:1,2)
29. Jesus wants us to cooperate with other parts of His body since He is the head. (I Cor. 12:21-30)
30. Jesus wants us to realize that after we suffer God is able to confirm us and make us strong, firm and steadfast. (I Pet. 5:10)
31. Jesus wants us to let every thought be given to God’s control so that we can be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding. To walk in a way that pleases Him in all respects and bears fruit in every good work. (Col. 1:9-11)
