Following Jesus vs. Following Your Heart

Our kids are growing up in a world where they’re told to live by a variety of popular mantras, including things like “You do you” and “just follow your heart.” The reality is that these messages ring loudly in our kids ears, convincing even those kids who claim to follow Jesus to give into their own desires rather than to God’s will. In Matthew 16:24 and 25 we read these words: Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘if anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and takeup his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” These words from Jesus are so counter-cultural that many walk away from Jesus and wind up choosing to live their lives under their own direction and to their own glory. They come to believe that in order to live their best version of themselves they should live ins submission to the trinity of me, myself, and I. Parents, we need to teach our kids that their best self is a denied self. Teach this through your words and example.