Are We Ready for the Cost of Being a Disciple?

Our community of curious and committed, and maybe even confused, people of faith are in the midst of a Fall exploration of the trails and tributaries Jesus leads us on as we choose to follow him. On a personal note, I am speaking the next two Sunday’s as I turn 70 and make a big transition from full-time pastoral ministry into a part-time role at The River. I intend to attempt to bring attention to two parts of my own discipleship: the cost of following Jesus and how that cost has shaped my pastoral ministry over the last five decades.

I am going to tell a story about a trip when I was 27 years old, leading a public-school mountaineering class near Big Sur, and had a tragic accident. Every day since, this experience has shaped my understanding of what it means to pay a price for choosing to follow Jesus, including as a pastor in the local church. I share my story with the hopes that you will discover that even though following Jesus does not exempt us from pain, it does bring hope that Jesus is right with us in the midst of this journey. Every step of the way.