Who is Jesus to YOU?

 Brian, myself, my brother, and his wife. Beech Mountain, NC. July 2021 Photo by one of my parents. 

  Today's Gospel from Mark has Jesus asking His disciples wo people say He is. Then he takes the question to another, much deeper level. He askes them Who do YOU say I am?

 Peter, of course, thinks he has the correct answer. " You are the Messiah", Peter replies. 

  But then Mark's telling of this story gets weird. Jesus tells His friends, the guys who have been following Him around for three years as he preached, taught and performed miracles that He { the Son Of Man} must suffer

   I'd imagine that this was not the answer that any of the disciples wanted to hear. The Messiah that they wanted and thought that they needed was one who would come in with brute force--- an entire military campaign behind him. But Jesus, in explaining His identity to them, essentially turns their notion of " Messiah" on its head. 

  And if this was not weird enough, Jesus then tells His friends, people He loves, that following Him as Messiah will cost them . He says " If any want to become My followers, let them deny themselves..."

  Fast forward to Year 2020-2021. Global pandemic, political unrest worldwide and basic human rights threatened. That is some tough stuff we deal with at present. 

  Wo is Jesus to ME? Of course, he is my Savior-- I promised to follow Him when I was baptized at the ripe old age of 20. In addition to Jesus being the Savior of the World, He is also my greatest teacher. Now don't get me wrong, I've known some great-- even excellent teachers from preschool through college. 

  One , a choir conductor under whos baton I sang  at The University Of West Florida-- wins the award for Sarah's Best Earthly Teacher.  Those of us who know here from UWF affectionately call her " Doc"

My major was not  Music, it was English with Communication Arts. I signed up for choir because I needed to fill that Fine Arts slot in my General Ed requirements. Not only was " Doc" the best conductor I've known, she taught me , by example, how to live like Jesus. 

With her guidance-- a relatively new Christian delved into the Gospels to learn more about what The  Savior of the World asks of His followers. She showed me, in word and deed , that being a Christ-follower is not easy-- and will mean that I would  let some unhealthy habits and attitudes go. Sometimes I did not want to heed her advice, but { usually} I trusted her enough to at least ponder her words. Se has reminded me many times of the past 22 years that following Christ is not for the weak of heart. 

  Yet having Jesus as my Savior and primary teacher continues to shape me into a happier, whole, healthy person. Especially during the Great Pandemic of 2020-21 I've  followed Christ 's instruction to give up much to keep others safe. Brian and I are both vaccinated, but we wear masks every time we are indoors in public. 

  Doc and I have known each other for over twenty years. We know a lot of each other's stories and she was the person I felt safe enough to turn to when I was assaulted at an off-campus party. I knew that Doc would not judge me for my lack of discretion when deciding to attend an off campus party with people whom I barely knew. 

  I owe Doc a HUGE " thank you" for setting me on a path to want to learn how to better be a disciple of Jesus. My identity as a follower of Christ has cost me a lot, but I've gained so much more by doing my best to read, study, mark and inwardly digest Holy Scriptures{ All of them.... even some Old Testament misogyny and the run-on sentences of the Pauline letters. }

  My identity is as a student of my Savior, Jesus. He is, and always will be, the Greatest Teacher. My favorite icon of Christ is entitled " Christ the Teacher" and when I look at the prayer card of this icon I feel His eyes smiling at me. 

Amen 

Sarah McCarren

12 Sept 2021