“The streets of our minds seethe with endless traffic;”
Ecclesiastes 1:1-11
“1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher,
vanity of vanities! All is vanity.
3 What does man gain by all the toil
at which he toils under the sun?
4 A generation goes, and a generation comes,
but the earth remains forever.
5 The sun rises, and the sun goes down,
and hastens to the place where it rises.
6 The wind blows to the south
and goes around to the north;
around and around goes the wind,
and on its circuits the wind returns.
7 All streams run to the sea,
but the sea is not full;
to the place where the streams flow,
there they flow again.
8 All things are full of weariness;
a man cannot utter it;
the eye is not satisfied with seeing,
nor the ear filled with hearing.
9 What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done,
and there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there a thing of which it is said,
“See, this is new”?
It has been already
in the ages before us.
11 There is no remembrance of former things,
nor will there be any remembrance
of later things yet to be
among those who come after.”
Luke 14:25
“Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. 27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. 28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ 31 Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.”
Reflection:
What does it mean to truly put your identity in Christ? It means being a true disciple.
What does this entail?
In Luke 14, Jesus lays out the terms of discipleship. There were great crowds following Him. Everyone loved the miracles, healing, and free food. Jesus was cool, the talk of the town, and the latest fad. But He knew their hearts. He knew they desired the benefits of what He did rather than an understanding of who He was.
Just like Solomon tasted every good gift under the sun, his soul clearly remained longing. We will be ultimately unsatisfied when we chase “Gods stuff” over Jesus himself. They loved His gifts, not the life and role He was calling them to. So He explained what it takes to be one of His followers:
Jesus said a lot in those simple illustrations. He quickly put an end to the idea that He offered some kind of welfare program. Although the gift of eternal life is free to anyone who asks (John 3:16), the asking requires a transfer of ownership (Luke 9:23; Galatians 5:24). “Counting the cost” means recognizing and agreeing to some terms first. In following Christ, we cannot simply follow our own inclinations. We cannot follow Him and the world’s way at the same time (Matthew 7:13-14). Following Him may mean we lose relationships, dreams, material things, or even our lives.
Those who are following Jesus simply for what they can get won’t stick around when the going gets tough. If we have not counted the cost of being His child, we will turn away at the threat of sacrifice and find something else to gratify our selfish desires. In Jesus’ earthly ministry, there came a time when the free food stopped and public opinion turned ugly. The cheering crowds became jeering crowds. And Jesus knew ahead of time that would happen.
Jesus ended His description of the cost of discipleship with a breathtaking statement: "Any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple" (Luke 14:33). “Renouncing” may mean we give up something physically, but more often it means we let go emotionally so that what we possess no longer possesses us. When we become one of His, we cannot continue to belong to this world. We must make a choice, for we cannot serve both God and Mammon (Matthew 6:24). The rich young ruler, when confronted with that choice, turned his back on Jesus (Luke 18:18-25).
Many people approach Christianity the same way. They love the idea of eternal life, escaping hell, and having Jesus at their beck and call. But they are not willing to leave the life they now live. Their desires, lifestyle, and sinful habits are too precious to them. Their lives may exhibit a token change—starting to attend church or giving up a major sin—but they want to retain ownership of everything else. Jesus is speaking in Luke 14 to those with that mindset.
In Jesus’ parable of the sower, it was only the soil that allowed the seed to put down roots and bear fruit that was called “good.” If we are going to be disciples of Christ, we must first count the cost of following Him.
But let us take heart. If we are taking care of God’s business as a priority—seeking His salvation, living in obedience to Him, and sharing the good news of the kingdom with others—then He will take care of our business as He promised.
Believers who have learned to truly put God first may then rest in this holy dynamic: “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33)
God has promised to provide for His own, supplying every need (Philippians 4:19), but His idea of what we need is often different from ours, and His timing will only occasionally meet our expectations. For example, we may see our need as riches or advancement, but perhaps God knows that what truly we need is a time of poverty, loss or solitude. When this happens, we are in good company. God loved both Job and Elijah, but He allowed Satan to absolutely pound Job (all under His watchful eye), and He let that evil woman, Jezebel, break the spirit of His own prophet Elijah (Job 1–2; 1 Kings 18–19). In both cases, God followed these trials with restoration and sustenance.
Jesus taught that our focus should be away from this world—its status and its lying allurements—and placed upon the things of God’s kingdom.
When we live fully committed to Jesus, absolutely nothing is “vanity”.
- Reflection by Dr. Rachel Murphy
Rachael Murphy was born and raised in Long Island, NY. She obtained her undergraduate degree from Boston University and her medical degree from St. George’s University. Dr. Murphy is currently in her neurology residency at Lehigh Valley Hospital and in the future plans to open a specialized practice focusing on healing of the whole, integrated person- biologically, psychologically, and spiritually.
The Way of Beauty:
Create an art piece using whatever medium you like. Perhaps a magazine collage, playdough sculpture, or drawing on the vanities of your life and things you need to let go. Focus on the beauty that appears when your life is full of what you want to keep, and can feel lighter and more resilient once unneeded attachments are released.
Lastly, if you want to shout it out, sing along with the popular song “Let it go”
The Contemplative Mystical Way:
Center into the sacred place you created two days ago. Allow yourself to reflect on the music in this Taize song, allow yourself to concentrate on the music, the instruments, the voices. Imagine yourself in the room with these musicians. What is it like to bear witness? Now imagine you are the musician. What is it like to give your all in worship, to surrender? Sing the song, really, sing it. Allow your self-consciousness to slide away. Present it as an act of prayerful worship, a gift of love to your Beloved.
The Way of Practical Action:
Check on your plant, see that the soil is moist, but not soaked. Only add a little bit of water every few days so the seeds don’t become waterlogged. Take a walk in a new direction. If you feel safe, walk to a street you don’t know or a path you haven’t followed. Experience a new place, and see yourself in it. Notice the traffic on the walk, maybe its people, maybe cars, maybe it is wildlife, or maybe it is something entirely different. Notice yourself in it, and notice what you sense in that place. As you leave that place to walk back home, leave the traffic of your mind in that place and walk without distraction.
Prayer:
Dear Breath of Life, thank you for inspiring us to count the cost, and surrender our fear, and to go forth, singing, as you transform the busy streets of our souls, and the busy byways of this seething, fragile, tenacious, and beautiful world in which You have placed us. We are in awe of Your goodness, and Your power to turn the powers of this world on its head, and to make all things new. Amen.
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