Not Easy

He said, "The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised." Luke 9:22

Shocked.

I am wondering if this was the reaction of the disciples with Jesus' declaration of what will happen next. After Peter's heavenly wisdom where he professed Jesus is the Messiah of God, Jesus enumerates his journey. Suffer greatly. To be rejected by church leaders. Be killed. He'll be raised up. The twelve must have thought if Jesus is the Savior then what's next might be a walk in the park. If he is the Messiah, life would be a piece of cake. It would be an uncontested lay-up. No hurdles along the way. Smooth sailing in the lake. Winds and waves will wear out. No storms in the coast. Life is like a Sunday morning, easy.

We know it's not.

When you decide that you are a follower of God, when you declare you are a servant of God, when you claim you are a man or woman after God, what's next will not be easy. You may have to face rejection of peers or even family. You might have to contend with suffering. You will get in the path of being harassed. Might not be to the extent of death yet it may drain you physically. We know it won't be easy. Wind and waves come as we sail. Torrents will whirlwind in our day to day lives. It won't be a summer day each day. I am not saying it will be all difficult hard fought life. Yet, this is one reality of declaring your heart and life are for God and of God. And yes, we know that at the end of this confronted journey, Jesus was raised up and so we will be. His grace will bring us to that conclusion.

We will be challenged. It won't be easy.