in his footsteps

Everyone has heard or read the now famous poem... footprints in the sand... it has touched many people... I have a variation in my mind and heart that I regularly visualize - I see one set of footsteps on the path, because I am walking in His footprints.  I believe I am called to FOLLOW JESUS in the world around me and not just believe in Him and Worship/Praise Him.  That means that I do not walk my own path.  It means that I walk the path prepared for me, forged ahead of me and upon which I must walk as one who claims the name of Jesus.  It means that I cannot claim to be His follower and live in the world in a way that ignores or hurts neighbor ("the least", stranger, enemy).  It means that I cannot judge others.  I must stubbornly refuse to judge others, even when my attitudes would say otherwise.  It means that I must help others in need when I am able to do so.  It means that I cannot value earthly wealth over the great and abundant wealth of the treasures of the Kingdom: Agape Love, Grace, Peace, Joy, Kindness...  It means that I address the forces in the world that would hurt my neighbor, turn God's house into an economic enterprise and wage war.  It means that when people see me, even if they have known me, they see Christ Jesus in me... it means that I flavor the world around me with the Great things of the Kingdom of God.
I am not there yet.  How 'bout you?
Walk as Jesus walked in the world.  To do that, you need but study the four Gospels (and Acts), to see what He said, did and how He was in the world.  It is a short read.  See how His closest followers failed at times and strove to follow Him, and how they did that in the 1st Century world.  No, it does not mean putting on sandals and a robe, growing a beard and being an itinerate preacher in the "Holy Land."  It means being transformed by the renewal of your mind and heart to submit to His will for you and conform to His way for you in the world in which you live.
That can be a life-long quest - to walk the path He walked... put my feet where He walked...
Walk in His footsteps.  The world needs that.
Pastor Jamie