Why We Say Yes: Shifting our focus back to Jesus (Pt. 1)
Rediscovering the Center of Our Faith
Years ago, at church—decades ago, really—a friend walked up to me and asked a question. He said, “Byron, how come you guys get to travel all over the world?”
Now, this was a guy who obviously wanted to travel the world himself and wasn’t doing it. His question caused me to pause. Internally, I was thinking, I don’t know if I really have an answer for this. I’m not some great orator that makes people go, “Oh, wow, I want to hear more. I love his eloquence.” I’m a simple guy—well, maybe not simple, but hopefully not complicated. (I guess Crystal would be the one to answer that!)
I kept thinking through it. Why do we get to travel? Over all those decades, traveling to so many different countries and locations, engaging with so many people, and ministering in a variety of ways... and then it hit me. I had a very simple answer for him.
I said, “Really, the only reason is that we took the risk and said yes.”
We all have the option to take risks in our lives and say yes. Have all of those risks turned out perfectly? A big no, for sure. We definitely made some mistakes along the way, but we took the risk.
It made me think about the apostles. Do you think their lives were perfect? Do you think they made every wise step? I don’t think so. They were human. They made mistakes. They listened to the Spirit as best they could and stepped into what they felt God was asking them to do. You don’t read much about their missteps in scripture, because that wasn’t the focus. The focus was Christ.
What did I gain from all these years of travel? I gained the knowledge that Christ is always with me. No matter where we go, no matter the mistakes we make, through the joys and the exultations—it’s all about Him.
Why do I not have more conversations about Him? Why is it that strategy, planning, and ideas are sometimes treated as more important than talking about Jesus? I don’t see that in Paul’s epistles to the churches. He didn’t spend much time talking about strategy or plans. He talked a lot about Christ and about how to live a holy life in the Holy Spirit.