Simply Follow Jesus

Follow Jesus. It's not complex, nor is it easy. 

Follow Jesus. It is especially important today.  And especially difficult.  Here are some specific ways to follow Jesus:

1.  Never let politics get in the way of the gospel of Jesus.  From the beginning of His ministry, Jesus turned away from power to work with the people around Him. 

2.  Partner with those different than you.  For His posse of 12 Jesus chose from the Broad political spectrum: Simon the Zealot and Matthew the tax collector.  That's more extreme than combining Bernie and Donald supporters.

3.  Don't criticize the government. Jesus never did. And Tiberius Caesar was morally worse than anything we even want to imagine. 

4.  Ask questions to learn where someone is coming from, and to guide conversations in a healthy direction.

5. Be more anxious to listen than you are to speak.  Genuine listening leads to understanding. Understanding leads to reconciliation. Reconciliation is at the heart of God's character. 

6.  Love your enemies, pray for them. This includes people who disagree with you politically, morally, religiously, and economically. 

7.  Look for the good you can do in a broken world. The world has never been 'fixed'. That will not change today.  But what can change today is the good that You can do and say.

Finally, Whatever you face today depend on God's power, don't worry about the government's.  Jesus never let the oppression of Rome keep Him from God's work, and we shouldn't either. 

Focus Scripture:  And He called the twelve together, and gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases.  And He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to perform healing.  Luke 9:1-2