But I do have a small handful of loyal readers who always read and often comment. I appreciate them and they're encouragement so much!
Jesus had followers too. He had lots. But he also lost followers.
...many of his disciples said, "This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?"
Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, "Does this offend you? What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe." For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. He went on to say, "This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him."
From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.
"You do not want to leave too, do you?" Jesus asked the Twelve.
Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God."
John 6:60-69
Jesus was teaching that he was the bread of life. Many were offended, or confused so much that they stopped following him that day. But he still had his loyal followers. They knew that only he had the the words of eternal life.
My words aren't perfect, nor do they lead to eternal life. But today I am thankful for my loyal following. As followers come and go, I'm so thankful for the loyal few. And when I lose followers I shouldn't be upset. Even Jesus lost followers!
But regardless of how often we can visit one anothers blogs, I pray that we can be loyal followers of Jesus. Don't you?
22 comments:
Great analogy. Thanks for sharing. Exactly what is a site meter? I've never heard of that. Blessings, SusanD
Good point Kelly! Have a terrific Monday!
Hugs & Blessings, Leslie
When I first began my blog, I was just having fun writing and trying to figure out Blogger applications to jazz up the page. But after the first few comments, I got mesmerized by them. It was like, wow, people out there somewhere are reading my words- I'm an author! Or something. And if I wrote something and nobody commented, I actually felt depressed. I'm over it. I'm pretty much back to just chillin' and writing what I'm thinking about for the sake of putting the thoughts somewhere to free up brain space.
Jesus must have felt sad when people rejected him, sad for them- that they were missing out on eternal Life- not sad for himself.
True Kelly. I pray we read His words more than we do each others. B
Love the analogy.
Great perspective on following! My relationship with blogging goes up and down. I have so little time these days and while I'd love to visit every blog I follow and also all my commenter's blogs, it just can't happen. I'm sure my followers are in the same boat. It helps to know that Jesus experienced the same things.
I have to laugh because the word verification box is reading "gaters".
Praying we will all be loyal to HIM and in turn be loyal to those serving HIM!
Hugs, love, and prayers,
andrea
That's a great analogy. I always have to keep it in perspective, the whole blog follower thing, and not get caught up in trying much to gain followers. I write for the Lord and hope to encourage others, all the while striving to follow Him. Have a great day!
Hi Kelly,
Thank you for stopping by my blog¬hope to see you there again.
I loved your post today! It is not about numbers who follow but what we can share and learn from each other and to glorify the Lord. I hope I will be an encouragement sharing all that the Lord has dne for me and how blessed I am!!
Have a wonderful day.
Blessings.
I love you friend!! :)
His Word leads to eternal life...and you point us there always.
Love you,
Sharon
Lurkers, not followers!
But I follow Jesus out of compulsive love and gratitude.
I follow you because we are on the same path.
Great post, Kelly!
Kelly,
Who knows what every one is doing these days. I show almost 200 followers but if I am lucky get a handful of comments a day and my site meter isn't a true reflection of what is really going on. I think most people follow at one point because they wanted to, found something interesting there and now with school in session, life is just in the way. Wait til summer is here and the traffic go through the roof.
Until then, I am here with you til the end!
Love and Hugs ~ Kat
I quote you in my comments on Sunday. You mention me in your blog on Monday. Cool.
hhmmm...I see you are up to 137.
I know what you mean exactly. The loyal followers are encouraging. Especially when I get in blog slumps and am not as loyal to the ones I really enjoy. I am thankful for the ones especially that have become friends. When we have a smaller amount of loyal followers, we get to know each other. That also helps to avoid the "great post" trap.
I am also thankful that you take the everyday occurances in our lives and turn them into teaching opportunities.
(I seem to say that to you a lot)
Followers is like friends, there's some there for us through thick and thin. Then there is those that are only there when something major happens or when they need us. I am so thankful for my few loyal followers that always offer encouragement and prayer when I need it. Even though like you I have over 100 followers but most never visit.
I do! I do!!
"Lord, to whom shall [I] go?"
I have said this (in my head) many times since December 15, 2009.
There is no other PLACE.
I completely understand the blog "follower" thing, but know, as you do, that we have no idea who is reading and how our words touch them. Each time I write I pray I'm faithful to what He's put on my heart and trust Him to get those words where they need to be. Even if it's to just one person.
No matter how many followers Jesus had, it was in the one-on-one encounters that we really learn about who He is. That's where the gospel comes alive.
Blessings to you. I've missed visiting my blog friends.
There is a lot in that scripture. "This is a hard teaching..." The followers left when the teaching became more than they wanted to hear. When it no longer tickled their ears and agreed with their beliefs. The true followers were the ones who persevered through the hard stuff. It is still true today.
Very good analogy!
I have a lot of followers and I to visit their blogs as often as I can. It's good for Christians to interact. I have to agree with Barbie.
I'm now a follower of this blog also. I invite to to visit my blog and follow if you wish. Your decision will in no way affect my following status on yours.
His Word leads to eternal life...and you point us there always.
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