Are You a Pathfinder or Just Fond of Jesus?

Have you ever wondered if there's a difference between admiring Jesus and truly following Him? I've discovered that many of us are content with being "fond" of Jesus rather than actually following where He leads. The invitation Jesus gave His disciples—"Follow me"—is the same invitation He extends to us today. But here's the truth: following requires the death of self, while fondness only requires occasional attention.

What Does It Mean to Be a Pathfinder?
A pathfinder is "a person who goes ahead and discovers and shows others a path or way." From day one, our church has been called to take new ground, to mark out paths so that others can find an easier way to get to the cross.

Every Sunday, we are eating fruit from a tree, from a seed that was planted over 42 years ago when my parents followed God's leading to plant this church. They left a successful HVAC business, a steady paycheck, church community, friends, and family—everything they knew—to follow Jesus' leading. God didn't lay out a detailed plan. He simply gave them a promise: "Follow me. I'll make you fishers of the broken, fishers of the disenfranchised."

When they found the original property, it was surrounded by empty beer bottles and a bar across the street where underage drinking was rampant. My dad looked at my mom and said, "This is the place." They knew God's promise to make them fishers of those who had given up on church or been hurt by it.

The church started in March 1983. By November of that same year, they held their first service in the building we're sitting in today. That's how fast God was moving when people were willing to follow and die to themselves.

The Four Chairs: Where Are You Sitting?
From the outside, all four chairs look the same. But every one of us is sitting in one of these chairs today:

Chair 1: "I Don't Want To" - These are people with hard hearts who hear God's Word but refuse to apply it. They love Jesus but don't like what He says about forgiveness, relationships, or obedience.

Chair 2: "I Don't Have Time To" - These people receive the Word with joy but have no root (Luke 8:13). Any relationship minus time spent together eventually dies. They confuse being active in church with being intimate with Jesus.

Chair 3: "I Can't Afford To" - Jesus said in Luke 8:14 that some are "choked by life's worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature." Money is the number one competitor for our hearts. Until you surrender your finances to Jesus, you're simply fond of Him. Everything good you have is because of Jesus—who gave you the ability to work for it?

Chair 4: "I Can't Believe I Get To" - These are the pathfinders. Jesus describes them in Luke 8:15 as those "with a noble and good heart who hear the word, retain it and by persevering, produce a crop." When I think about serving God, I say, "I can't believe I get to do this for people. It never gets old."

Building the Future
What we're building here isn't just about a bigger building. We're creating a facility to facilitate revival, more recovery programs, marriage workshops, and a children's ministry where families with special needs children can worship without worry. We're building people who are healthy spiritually, emotionally, and physically—people who know their true identity and purpose in Christ.

It's our time now. I hope that 20 or 30 years from now, someone will stand up and say, "The only reason I'm here today is because someone decades ago decided to pave the way for me."

Jesus said in Matthew 16:24-25: "If anybody wants to follow me, he must give up all rights to himself, take up his cross and follow me."

Are you following Jesus or just fond of Him? Are you going to let fear keep you from the opportunity of a lifetime?