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When I was a teen, my favorite job was babysitting for my piano teacher’s children. I’m not entirely sure letting me be responsible for her 3 little ones was necessarily the sanest choice, but the kids sure loved it. We had quite a few rowdy games that we played with great fervor, but none so much as “Rock-A-Bye-Baby.” Most people I know gently rock their children and then give them a little pretend-toss when they get to the line “down will come baby”, but that’s not how we played it. I would wrap one of them up snug in a blanket, rock them vigorously back and forth until they were giggling uncontrollably, and then, at the “down will come baby” climax, literally toss them 2 or 3 feet through the air onto their overstuffed couch. And they loved it. It never crossed their minds that I could very possibly lose my grip on them prematurely and drop them on the floor. And I’m sure they never thought I would ever miss the couch and send them flying into a less forgiving piece of furniture. Perhaps the craziest part of our game was the fact that they kept coming back for more. “Do it again! Do it again!”

So when Jesus says we should come to him like little children, I like to think of those 3. They trusted me completely - so much so that they literally put themselves into my hands. Do we trust Jesus that much? There will be times when my life is in so much chaos and motion that I have no control over it, but my response needs to be complete trust that He will not lose His grip on me. And in the moments when I feel as though I am hurtling through the air toward who-knows-what, He calls on me to rest in the assurance that He has, in His infinite love and wisdom, chosen the exact right place for me to land.

BIG IDEA FOR THE DAY: Would you let Jesus throw you on the couch? And then ask for more?

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Sometimes, I think Jesus is just being rude to people. Here’s a nice man with great upbringing and a pretty solid spiritual background approaching Jesus with a very bold statement of commitment. If I had been there, this man’s statement of commitment would have put my own commitment to shame. There are some places where I really don’t want to go. This guy seems to have it all together!

That’s the problem with words of promise. They can convince us that something is true about a person when in fact it might not be. I look at Jesus and initially think he’s rude, but then I remember that Jesus came to earth on a mission of life and death that would label him as a workaholic for three straight years. He got up early in the morning to pray, and he went to bed late at night. He was constantly surrounded by crowds (and at times by some really annoying fishermen). But the mission wasn’t about celebrity. Ultimately, he was going to give up his life for the sake of others, and he was going to call his followers to do the same.

Perhaps it wasn’t rudeness but straightforward honesty that drove Jesus to challenge this man’s commitment to “go anywhere.” Perhaps Jesus knew the man wasn’t interested in a nomadic life but was rather interested in just walking with Jesus to his final destination assuming that Jesus had a home base from which he operated. Perhaps the man was simply asking, “Jesus, can I sleep over tonight?” Perhaps that’s what Jesus knew about the man, but at any rate, Jesus simply says, “I’ve got no place to sleep tonight or any night. There is no home base for what I’m doing. Are you aware of what you are signing on for?” And that’s the last we hear of this particular man.

The other man, of course, seems to be a little more honest and humble, but Jesus again responds with something that seems to be rude! This man just wants to bury his father, and Jesus says, “Forget about him! His body will turn to dust on its own eventually. Just leave it!” Or maybe that’s not what Jesus was saying at all. Perhaps Jesus knew something about this man too. Perhaps this man’s father wasn’t actually dead yet. Perhaps this man’s father wasn’t even sick. Perhaps this man was saying, “Well, Jesus, once my parents have passed, then I’ll look you up.” Perhaps Jesus was saying, “If that’s what you want to do with your life, wait for your parents to die, then you are already dead yourself. So go, let dead people bury dead people.”

Or perhaps Jesus was simply using these opportunities to teach something to those who would be reading these verses in 2008.

Jesus sacrificed a great deal to get on the road proclaiming good news and healing people, and he calls his followers to similar sacrifice. Are you waiting around for something to happen before you will give Jesus your full allegiance? Are you displaying a surface commitment to Christ while not actually addressing what it will cost you?

BIG IDEA FOR THE DAY: Take time now to reflect on your status with Christ. He calls his followers to sacrifice for the sake of the mission. “Follow me,” he says.

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By saying this, Jesus was calling his own people faithless and a centurion faithful!

How often do we judge people by their appearance, their background, or their ability to say things the “right way”? Of course, Jesus doesn’t do that kind of judgment. His judgment is based on who the centurion actually is, and who he is is a man of deep confidence in the total authority of Jesus.

In the centurion’s thinking, Jesus doesn’t need to know the diagnosis of the sickness, Jesus doesn’t need to touch the sick person, Jesus doesn’t even have to be near the house. As a man with total authority, Jesus can simply declare something and it becomes reality. If Jesus says a person is well, that person will be well from the moment the word is spoken. The centurion was right.

But we’re focusing on the words of Jesus, and what he says is terribly challenging. Basically, he says that there is room in the kingdom of God only for those who live under the supreme authority of Christ. The centurion has faith in Christ’s authority so strong that he lives his life based on it, and people like that are the ones who will be welcomed into the kingdom.

Take this as a serious challenge. In Jesus eyes, it matters not what you look like, what your background is, or anything else. What matters is whether you are willing to submit yourself entirely to his authority. Are you? If you aren’t the promise of the kingdom is not for you.

BIG IDEA FOR THE DAY: There is room in the kingdom only for those who live under Christ’s authority.

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The leper had said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean,” and Jesus responds with a simple, “I am willing. Be clean!”

I find myself often thinking of God as if he is playing games with me. He is holding out the promise of great blessing, but not actually delivering on that promise in my life today. I haven’t seen anyone healed in miraculous fashion before. I haven’t seen waters part, a pillar of fire guide my path, a burning bush, or a dead person come back to life.

So the simplicity of Jesus’ response challenges me. Jesus just said, “I am willing.” It’s all so effortless and easy. Is he still that willing to work in our lives? Is he still that willing to do miraculous acts? Whether he is or isn’t willing to work the same way he did back then, I choose to approach him daily the way the leper approached him—with simplicity and humility asking him to work in my life according to his will.

BIG IDEA FOR THE DAY: Jesus doesn’t need to be coerced. If he’s willing, he will act without delay.

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Today is Sunday, and you have the opportunity to hear God’s Word spoken to you and explained to you. Do not allow the opportunity to be wasted by mere observation, listening, or missing out altogether. You must choose to hear the message and then put it into practice. In all of the Bible, the promise of a stable life is given repeatedly but only to those who hear the word of God and put it into practice.

What is one thing you can do today to put God’s Word into practice?

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