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Something that puzzled me when I first decided to take my relationship with Jesus seriously was that my life suddenly became more challenging. I mean, what's going on with that? "I'm a child of the King! He fights my battles." Uh-huh...

For me, it felt like the more I dedicated myself to knowing Him, the more challenging my circumstances became. My limited understanding couldn't make sense of it at the time; it took years for me to truly grasp what it means to follow Jesus and to be His disciple. It is safe to say that making you comfortable isn't His top priority. It will cost you everything.

Jesus called people to follow Him, and those who did became His disciples.

Disciple: Someone who follows another person or another way of life and who submits himself to the discipline (teaching) of that leader or way. (BEB).

Most of my confusion about the hardships came from two words in that definition: "submit" and "discipline." Let me take you back about 30 years. I was living a pretty good life here in South Carolina. I had the best job I'd ever held up to that point—a maintenance supervisor with an international construction company and great pay for the time. I owned a new house, had several vehicles, and enjoyed my fair share of toys. I went through an ATV, a Goldwing, and some fast boats. I was popular, looked up to, and spent nearly every weekend on stage with a band at local events. My life seemed full on the surface, yet deep down, it felt pretty empty. I began to sense that something was missing.

At that time, I couldn't attend church because of my hectic schedule. My regular shift had me working twelve-hour days on Saturdays and Sundays, and band practice filled my Wednesday nights. Years earlier, I had been baptized in the Holy Spirit, and even though I hadn't stepped foot in a church for a while, there was always that hunger inside, that gentle whisper calling me back. I began to miss the intimacy with the Lord that I once had. He was calling me to follow Him.

I began to listen to any Bible teaching I could find, and it began to fan the flames inside me. My hunger grew. Soon, I was listening to the Bible around the clock. I came across a teaching by Derek Prince on fasting, and it inspired me to embark on a two-week fast with only water. I was so zealous for the Lord that I hardly noticed the hunger at the time. I began to pray for the Lord to remove anything that was holding me back from being closer to Him. Silly me...

A week into the fast, I noticed that things were beginning to change around me. I had a personal revival. I simply quoted a Scripture to a co-worker one day when washing up, and they went home and asked Jesus into their life that night.

Yep, just one week in, and everything was going great. Life was sunshine and roses—but then life took an unexpected turn. On the last day of my two-week fast, I received a call to come into the office, and just like that, I was laid off. It was shocking, upsetting, and completely unexpected. Confusion, anxiety, and turmoil set in, not to mention mounting bills.

I found myself on unemployment for a while, struggling to find any kind of job. I had to sell off many of my possessions just to keep up with the bills. But there was a silver lining: with all that free time, I could finally attend church as much as I wanted. Before long, I began attending Bible college at night, not realizing that one day I would be here, sharing this.

That season was incredibly humbling for me. I prayed earnestly for the Lord to provide me with a job—any job—as long as I could continue listening to His word during the day. That was my one request. I assumed He would lead me into a Christian environment. I cheerfully daydreamed of working in a Christian bookstore surrounded by His people and talking about Jesus.

I even came close to landing a job at a Christian school, where I would have been handling maintenance tasks, which I felt confident about. But when we sought the Lord in prayer, each of us heard, "No, not at this time."

I should have been more specific in my prayer for a job. Eventually, I was called in for an interview at a brass polishing plant. The moment I walked up, the manager simply asked me: "Are you ready to start? You should bring something to listen to because it can get pretty boring here." When he said that, the Holy Spirit whispered, "This is what you asked me for." So I said, "Yep."

For the next year, I polished brass at a roaring buffing machine in a dimly lit building for a third of what I used to make, and I came home each day as black as charcoal. However, I got to listen to the Bible all day and pray in the spirit for hours at a time undisturbed. The fire within me grew, and as I grew more humble, He began to use me in a powerful way. A mini revival broke out around me at the brass plant, and soon, everyone there was coming to church with me.

This is just an example of the kind of things that may happen when you submit to the leading of the Holy Spirit and let God be in charge. When you begin the exciting journey of making Jesus your Lord, instead of just calling Him that. Jesus called many people to follow Him. He said "Follow Me" over twenty times.

Understand this: God is not your co-pilot. When His kingdom comes, your kingdom goes, and at first, we may feel sad about it, but isn't that what the Lord Jesus taught His disciples to pray:

(Matthew 6:9-10 NKJV) In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.

What are we going to say when it begins to happen to us: "Oh, you were serious about that?" Jesus called many people to follow Him. Some, like Peter, James, and John, followed Jesus wholeheartedly. Others followed Him for a while, but when it became difficult, they turned back (John 6:66).

We know that Jesus once fed 5,000, but there were only 120 gathered in the upper room. Jesus called some people who began to make excuses because their lives were too busy (Luke 9:59). While others claimed to be following Him but didn't actually obey His teachings. To them, He said:

(Luke 6:46 NKJV) "But why do you call Me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do the things which I say?"

That brings us to a frequently asked question, one I had back then: "Why?" My conversation with God went something like this: "I'm trying to be a good Christian, praying, fasting, giving, and now I am unemployed? Why did I lose my job and others who don't even know You got to keep theirs?" Because you were chosen for something better. "Well, it doesn't feel better."

When you ask Jesus into your heart, you join the body of Christ and become one of the Ekklesia, "the called-out ones." We are called out of the world to be different. You were not born a child of God; you were born again as a child of God. Before we were saved, we were not His children, and He did not discipline us (Hebrews 12:7-8).

Now that you are part of His body, He wants first place in your life in all areas: in your relationships, in your finances, in your decisions, and at your job. Anything that we mark off limits will become a stumbling block. For example, He will tell us to give money away, but our mind will tell us to keep it. He will then make you choose your master (Matthew 6:24), for faith without action is dead (James 2:26). "Why do you call Me Lord, Lord, and not do the things which I say?"

Remember the rich young ruler who had great possessions? Jesus told him, one thing you lack - give all that away and come follow Me. But when he heard these things, he became very sad. Jesus saw what had a grip on his heart, and He forced him to make a choice (Luke 18:18-23). He will do the same for each of us. Make no mistake: following Jesus will involve sacrifice. Anything you love more than Him will be put to the test, just as He asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. In the same way, what you are able to let go of, He will give back.

A true disciple does what Jesus says and submits to His discipline. The experience may not always be sunshine and roses, but they do not turn back. They stay the course. His correction is sometimes necessary, but our human nature doesn't like to be corrected, especially men, and doubly so for preachers. We are like strutting peacocks and can have hearts that are the farthest away from God, just as the Pharisees were like white-washed tombs trying to correct Jesus (Matthew 23:27-28). Holy on the outside doesn't count.

In the Kingdom of God, the way up is down. The most humble will be at the top. The last shall be first. Many will put their hand to the plow, but when the storms come, will begin to look back. You may feel: "I had problems before I became a Christian, but nothing like this," but I can tell you that it is temporary, and this too shall pass. Let Him have His way.

Jesus says, "Follow Me. Don't look back at what you're missing. Don't look to the left or right and think the grass looks greener over there. This season will pass, but you will come out of the other side changed forever. Follow Me."

You can pray this with me if you like:

Prayer: Heavenly Father, please cleanse and refine me from the inside out. My life is Yours, and I pray that You help me make the most of it. Forgive me for the times that I have become distracted. Speak to me in a way that I understand and help me focus on the right things. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.