Reflection for the 3rd Week after Pentecost, 2022
Scriptures: Psalm 16; Luke 9:51-62
Key Verse: Jesus said, “Follow me.” (Luke 9:59a)
A couple days ago while hiking the Glacier Basin Trail, we heard a loud commotion ahead of us and what sounded like people singing or yelling. A hiker appeared and told us that there was a baby bear stuck on a tree, and he realized that he had walked between the cub and the mother bear. He advised us not to go down at that moment and wait a little bit, so we did. Luckily, while waiting, a ranger who was also on her way down passed by us. After hearing my daughter’s explanation about the situation, she explained and advised us on what we could do in case we ran into the bear. So, I asked her if it was okay for us to follow her down. She gladly led us down the path.
As she was leading the way, she walked at a normal pace most of the time, but occasionally she would slow down a little bit to observe both sides of the trail. After about five or ten minutes, she told us that it was safe now for us to hike our way back to the parking lot. My family and I admired her leadership on that short path. She knew the context well and passed down enough knowledge to us. Even though she was petite, her calm presence and her knowledge were enough to make us feel safe to follow her. I remained alert but certainly not anxious while following her.
What makes a leader and a follower? If we browse on the internet about leadership or do simple research on it, it is overwhelming to read all the blogs and learn that there are so many resources out there. Based on our own contexts, we would all define leaders and followers differently. However, the common principles of what makes a leader or a follower shouldn’t be too different. If there is a leader, there is a follower. We can’t call ourselves leaders if there aren’t any followers. As leaders, in order to keep followers with a sense of purpose, constantly unlearning the old and learning the new are crucial. It means that a leader also needs to be a follower of someone who can lead further.
It’s interesting to see the number of followers that some of the biggest social media influencers have on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or other platforms. Every influencer has their own mission or purpose that they share with the public. Their followers have the freedom to unfollow anytime. In order to make any impact, an influencer needs to get a certain amount of followers who share the same values and pass it on. And a leader can only lead as far as one is willing to go or capable of doing. Once a leader reaches one’s limits, followers who are not content with what has been offered will move on to another leader who can lead, challenge and motivate them to grow.
Jesus generated crowds of followers and lost many throughout his earthly ministry. Like our current social media followers, some followed Jesus for their personal faith convictions and some for their communal identity as Christians. From Luke 9:51-62, some rejected Jesus right away because the direction Jesus was heading in verse 53 and some couldn’t follow him because they couldn't see the relevance of the message of God’s kingdom that leads people to life in their journey in verses 59 and 61.
After more than 2 years of the pandemic, many Christians, Jesus’ followers, are longing to go back the old way of doing and being the church. God’s kingdom message is always relevant to us, but the old way of doing and being the church might become stumbling blocks for us to proclaim God’s kingdom message and live it out. Let’s think of a person who is used to driving on the right-hand side of the road with a steering wheel on the left side of the car. They travel to a country where they need to drive on the left-hand side of the road with a steering wheel on the right side of the car. The purpose of the car doesn’t change but the tool and the context have been changed. The traveler still has the skill of driving but has to unlearn their old ways of thinking and doing in order to move forward. May God bless each of your faith journeys and guide you through the old and the new so that you as a leader and a follower may continue to follow Jesus and lead your faith community courageously and faithfully. Amen.
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