Following Jesus’ example of obeying the will of God can be a difficult thing.  I found out first hand just how hard it can be.  I had been offered a new job that was an incredible opportunity and blessing that God bestowed upon me.  That bad part was it was 400 miles from my home and that meant leaving my family and striking out on my own until our house could be sold and they could join me.

I was confident that God wanted me to follow this path.  I knew this was what God meant for me to do…even though I knew the loneliness and hardships of being away from my wife and son, for an undetermined amount of time, would be difficult to bear.  I cried almost every day that we were apart and pleaded with God to hasten our reunion.  I forgot that what is to be is in God’s time not my time.  It is “Thy will be done,” not “my” will be done.

God had given me, up to that point, the toughest test of my life and I nearly failed.  I nearly failed because I made the situation about me and my loneliness, and not the blessings and path God had chosen for me.

Jesus knew his time on earth was coming to an end.  His humanity was troubled and afraid of what was to come to pass.  Even though he was afraid of the prospect of facing death he knew there was no way to go against the will of his Father so he went willingly.

His death and resurrection had been predestined from the beginning of time and he was prepared to fulfill that prophecy.  He said to his disciples “Amen,  amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit”.  Jesus knew that his death and resurrection would cleanse the sins of man and inspire many people to follow in the steps of fledgling Christianity.  Jesus knew his death and resurrection would be an almost irresistible call to people to follow his teachings and to live their lives closer to God and his covenants.

The challenge for us as Christians, is to accept whatever God has planned for us.  We may not understand his reasoning, but we must have unwavering faith, just as Jesus did.  We must learn that we are to follow God’s will no matter how difficult or frightening it may seem.  We must remember that God has only love for us, and has only the best intentions for us in our lives.

Therefore it is up to us to go forth and proclaim the joys of the gift of forgiveness. Christ died for us. We must also bear fruit in our lives but praising and preaching the word of God.