Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

The Decision

“At once they left their nets and followed him” Matthew 4v20

Decisions have to be made. A decision is to choose one thing over another. If there is no choice, there is no decision. Depending on my stage in life, I may choose one course of study rather than another, or one car rather than another, or simply one pair of socks for today rather than another.

Peter and Andrew, and then James and John had a decision to make: would they follow Jesus or continue what they were doing? They could not do both.

Jesus had made his deal plain: “Change your mindset, come close to me, follow me in what I am doing, and I will enable you in your God-given purpose.” To follow him was a radical decision – only possible with a change of mindset – they were turning their backs on some income to follow a roaming preacher with no home, no income, and no real status. Why decide “Yes”? Because there was something about Jesus that captivated them and they had heard from John the Baptist that he was the Messiah. From a worldly point of view it was a tough decision. But knowing what they did of Jesus, swung the balance for them.

And so we read for Peter and Andrew, “At once they left their nets and followed him.” And just after, for James and John, “ Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.” Here is a question for each of us – ‘What do I need to leave behind to truly follow Jesus?’ The closer you get to Jesus, the easier it becomes.

With love and blessing,

Roland