It’s not always pleasant to talk about the things God’s Word says. When I meditate on Scripture, it’s very common for me to become uncomfortable by what I am reading. But to follow Christ is not about being comfortable—it’s about being sold-out to the God with the nailed-scarred hands, being radical for Him, standing up for Him, and speaking the truth in love, with grace.

Follow the Lord wherever He is leading you, then depend upon Him to give you more courage to take the next step. “If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him” (John 12:26).

Whatever we lose today in humble service to Christ, we will regain a trillion times over in the long tomorrow. “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it” (Luke 9:23–24).

Perspectives from God’s Word

“Whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it” (Mark 8:35).

“Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might” (Ephesians 6:10).

Perspectives from God’s People

“Courage seems a contradiction: a strong desire to live taking the form of a readiness to die.” —G. K. Chesterton

“It is easier to find a score of men wise enough to discover the truth than to find one intrepid enough, in the face of opposition, to stand up for it.” —A. A. Hodge

Excerpted from Randy Alcorn's book Seeing the Unseen.

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