Colossian 1:17, speaking about Jesus, say: "He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together." Wow.

Just stop and think about that truth for a second. Right now, at this very moment, Jesus is holding everything together by His power, glory, and grace.

Everything.

Birds.

The ocean.

The mountains.

Ever one of our billions of cells.
Our heart beats.

Our very lives.

Everything.

I recently had a conversation with a friend about perspective. I had mentioned that it was humbling and convicting to think about my life and how I often go throughout each one of my days doing and acting in a way that really doesn't show a dependence on God. I feel like I so often will go throughout each day willingly telling God that He has control, but really, I only allow Him to have aspects of my life that, quite frankly, I already control or don't really care about.

Sad...I know. But think about it....Think about your normal day. When are you totally surrending to, and relying upon Jesus, to carry you through? It is a sobering thought.

This past week, we talked about the word "Wherever." Coming to a place in our lives, where we can say, "God, gloriously interrupt any aspect of my life...my time, my money, my future, my reputation, those sins that I keep holding onto. Nothing is off limits." Oftentimes though, when we say we want to follow Jesus with our enitre lives, we really mean the parts that are convienent to give up. Our lives sound something more like, "I want to follow you with all my life, as long as it isn't hard, doesn't interrupt my plan, I don't lose any friends, and I can still do what I want."

We tend to be more like the Priest and the Levite, rather than the Good Samaritan. We want control of the wheel, when it comes to big life issues, but the easy, no risk areas of life...Jesus can have those...and we call this "faith."

But what if a change of perspective would change all of that. What if we realized that every aspect of our lives was totally, 100% dependent on Jesus. This is what my friend helped me realize...I am totally dependent on Jesus is every single nook and crany of my life...that is humbling to think about.

As you continue to think through what it means to truly be a FOLLOWER of Jesus...everyday...use these questions and passages to help you think about AND apply the truth of God's Word to your everyday life this week!

1. What area of your life are you holding onto most, reluctant to give it to Jesus?

-Do you hold onto that area of your life, because you believe that it is dependent upon you?

2. Read Colossians 1:15-18 & Hebrews 1:3

- These verses speak of how Jesus is holding everything together...that at the word of His mouth, mountains move...

- Is this humbling?

- What do these truths do to your understanding of following Him in EVER area of your life and realizing that no matter how hard you try to control situations, He ultimately is in control?

3. How do these truths spoken about in these verses, change your understanding of glorious interruptions...are they really "interruptions" or "accidents"?

4. How will recognizing that Jesus "holds all things together", affect your life this week?

This week is our first 3 Thursday Guy/Girls Night...make plans to join either group and connect with your small group leaders!