By Guest Writer Joe Han

Legacy Ladies Note: I met Joe my senior year of high school and was completely blown away by the kind of person he was. He is SO hardworking, so full of life, and has an amazing outlook on the world. When he told me he was going to college in Chicago for film I was so proud of him because I know he is going to change the world. Joe is insanely talented. Even in high school he had already won national awards for film. He is the best of the best, but he would never admit that. He is the most humble person I know. Joe has inspired me to pursue the Lord above everything else and has modeled what that really looks like. I am honored for him to be our first guest writer for Legacy Ladies so that you can all hear from a man who is truly after God’s own heart. -Nikki

I am not a pastor. I am not a theologian. I surely am not a religious expert in any way. I am just a 19-year-old Christian college student living out my faith in Chicago, IL.

It is without a doubt that Christianity has become watered down in society. It is sad to walk with people who say they love Jesus with their mouths but live their lives putting themselves on the pedestal and prioritizing their wants and needs. Unfortunately, I am preaching to myself.

This is me every single day. My heart desires to follow Jesus Christ, but I am just too lazy in my sinful nature to accept the importance of lordship. I continue to live according to my own will. Why is this?

The Gospel and Jesus’ teachings are not hard to understand, but rather they are hard to accept. In John 6:60, many of those who were following Jesus Christ left His side because the teaching was too hard. Ladies and gents, the way to heaven is a very narrow road.

So how do we make our lives actually reflect what we proclaim to be true?

Stop living for yourself

Christ commands us to deny ourselves, pick up our cross, and follow Him. Even Jesus, the Son of God and God himself, did this (Matthew 26:39). But what does that mean? It means we need to get rid of our desires, our wants, and be ready to follow Jesus and face the persecution that comes with following Him. I promise you there are days when I don’t want to be a Christian. I want to live the life of this world so badly. I am tempted to sleep around with women, indulge in parties, alcohol, and drugs, but I know that satisfaction is only temporary. The real treasure is in heaven: eternal life! I figure the 80 years of mockery, torture, and persecution is well worth an eternity with the Lord.

Lordship: Is He truly first in your life?

For me, I had to let go of my dream. Being a film student in Chicago, the competition is fierce. It’s a dog-eat-dog world. My talent and skills are good and my desire is to succeed in my film program at my school. However, I had to cut that desire out because that is not my purpose here on earth. My job is to follow Christ and be obedient to his teachings. If God pulls me out of film school, so be it. It’s a scary thought, but who am I to argue with the Creator of the universe? I need to let go so God can fulfill His plans. Plus, I know that it’s a better plan than I could ever think of.

DisciplineYoSelf

Young adults of the 21^st century lack discipline and order. We make up excuses and say that is how we function or how we express ourselves… heck to the NO! We need discipline in our lives. If you want to live and follow Jesus Christ you need to put Him first and discipline yourself in His ways. In my life that means:

• Getting up early to start out my day with the Lord.
• Abstaining from parties, alcohol, and other women, for they all lead me to temptation.
• Constantly praying.
• Treating others with love.
• Sharing the Gospel with anyone and everyone.

These three points are not separate, but one. We need to stop thinking of our relationship with God as a man to a Higher Being, but as a marriage. We are married to Christ when we decide to follow Him (Revelation 19:7). We are the Bride (this is a very hard concept for men to grasp, but it is the truth) and He is the Groom.  As a great wife and husband constantly communicate and serve one another, Christ wants us to constantly interact with Him in our daily lives. Our groom is away at the moment, preparing us a place in His Kingdom, and our job is to spread the Gospel to the entire world until He comes back.

To close out, I want to share a story of Helen Roseveare, an English missionary who served in the Congo as a doctor to 2.5 million people. She was a normal person just like you and me. However, during her time there she was beaten, slandered, imprisoned, tortured and raped multiple times by the natives, yet she kept on. She announced publicly that she would go wherever the Lord took her. Her prayer was that the Lord would continue His work even when she cried out in pain and requested to stop the suffering. That is a dangerous prayer, but when she asked herself, “Was it worth it all?” her response was:

“I suddenly knew with every fiber of my being these twenty years had been worthwhile, very, very worthwhile, utterly worthwhile, with no room left for regrets or recrimination” (R: Valley, p. 188).  “I have looked back and tried to count the cost, but I find it all swallowed up in privilege. The cost suddenly seems very small and transient in the greatness and permanence of the privilege” (R: Cost).

Jesus promises us that we will suffer and be put to death for the sake of His name on this earth (Matthew 10:16-23), but to me, that is the sweetest death of all.

Now the question is, are you willing to follow Jesus Christ for the rest of your life? Are you ready to give up everything for the sake of the Gospel? Are you living for Christ Jesus? I pray you are. Because at the end, it will all be worth it.