³¹ Then Jesus began to tell them that the Son of Man must suffer many terrible things and be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but three days later he would rise from the dead. ³² As he talked about this openly with his disciples, Peter took him aside and began to reprimand him for saying such things.

³³ Jesus turned around and looked at his disciples, then reprimanded Peter. “Get away from me, Satan!” he said. “You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God’s.”

³⁴ Then, calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. ³⁵ If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it. ³⁶ And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? ³⁷ Is anything worth more than your soul? ³⁸ If anyone is ashamed of me and my message in these adulterous and sinful days, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when he returns in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

Mark 8:31-38

Dear God, I want to look at Jesus’s choices here. He tells the twelve something that is hard for them to hear. Peter’s upset and decides to confront Jesus about it. I commend Peter for taking Jesus aside and doing it privately. But then Jesus brings the other disciples into it. Then he brings the crowd into it. He’s seemingly found a teachable moment and he’s going to make this message as clear as he can for everyone, not just Peter. He could have kept this coversation only with Peter. And what was the message? Winning for you doesn’t look like winning for me. You are holding on to your life. You think I should hold on to my life. But this physical life is nothing compared to what is to come. That’s where you need to turn your attention and make your priority.

I confess that when I read Jesus’s words this morning about losing my life, suffering, etc. I was disheartened. That was my first thought. I don’t want to lose my life. I don’t want to suffer. I’m awfully comfortable in my life right now. I’m not even sure how much I’m willing to be inconvenienced. And that’s an overstatement. I’m working with men and trying to show your love to them. I’m giving of my time and money to things. I guess, as I sit here at my breakfast table right now on a Saturday morning, I’m feeling very comfortable and a resistance to being made uncomfortable.

Father, give me ears to hear your still small voice. Help me to hear Jesus’s words of admonishment and know what to do with them. Help me to see what you want me to see around me and the knowledge to know you are calling me to act and how you are calling me to act. For your glory, Lord. For your glory, alone.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen