Exacting Discipleship...

Exacting Discipleship. What is that? What does that even mean??

In Luke 9: 57-62, in the NASB, this section of Scripture is titled "Exacting Discipleship". In other translations it is headed "Counting the Cost". According to the interwebs, exacting is "making great demands on one's skill, attention, or other resources." And "exacting" can be seen in a positive light or a negative light: "positive when it refers to someone who is precise and meticulous, but negative when it refers to someone who is hard to please."

In the Body of Christ, we see all types of disciples, discipling as they know best how, or in ways they are called to, or discipling as they learn what it truly means to be a disciple. Many have counted the cost; some have not. What is the "cost"? "Then He said to them all, 'If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me'" (Luke 9:23). What is the cost to me? Will I follow Him if I have to follow Him alone? What does that old song say? "Though none go with me, still I will follow". That's where I am right now. Though none go with me, still I will follow. I love Jesus enough to go alone. I love Him enough to go to places where I am extremely uncomfortable. I love Him enough to go where there might not be nice bathroom facilities. I love Him enough to go where He leads, because fresh fire comes with radical obedience. And I want fresh fire! I love Him enough to go where it might be unsafe, according to some, because I want to witness the radical love of Jesus and the move of the Holy Spirit in this lost and undone world.

Right now it is 4:02 am. I have been awake for hours, having slept a bit, but now not sleeping at all. Wide Awake! I have listened to Worship music, scrolled a bit, but can't shake off what was spoken from the pulpit today. A small passage. A passage I have studied before, long days ago, before I gave my life to Jesus and made Him LORD. Back in 2001. Not to say I haven't read this passage since then, when reading "in general". BUT. Today is the 1st time I have read this with a closer look.

Luke 9:62 is the last verse of Chapter 9. A hard stop. "And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the Kingdom of God." KJV.

So much has been happening with me; with me and Jesus. Teaching and learning; praying and crying and singing; reading the Word and seeing things I have never seen before; hearing His Voice in worship or study; and not knowing what to do with what He told me.

In the past few months, He has "given me a new name". WOW! That is super-cool! I don't know many people who speak openly about these things. So I haven't seen it walked-out. I don't know what I am supposed to do with that. Is it my "pet name", between Jesus and me? Is that what He calls me when we are together in the Secret Place? I'm not so sure. In the Bible, when He gives someone a new name, change is coming...like a freight train...coming and you can't stop it. Abram became Abraham. Sarai became Sarah. Jacob became Israel. It was a "thing" in the Bible. And it wasn't a very frequent thing; more like a rare thing. Rare in that it was infrequent, and rare in that it was very valuable. In the present day, I know only one woman who has received a new name from Jesus and actually took it public and legally changed her name. She is a powerful woman of God, walks in obedience, joy spilling out wherever she goes, thriving in the Light of the LORD. And I know one other woman who received a new name from Jesus. And it is not for public consumption. She wars in the Secret Place with her identity sealed in the Blood of Jesus. She knows her identity in Him, and at this time, the World does not need to know this name.

So hold that thought.

The last time I was blessed enough to sit with my friend/mentor/encourager...let's call her "Shirley", we both laughed as I was explaining to her how I was trying to be "normal" about some revelations I had received from GOD, so as not to come across like a crazy lady. She said "you are so self-aware". And we both laughed. I think it was a compliment. Self aware. Self aware? Or Fearful? Am I aware of how I might come across, and therefore not want to put anyone off? Not worship too big, and have people think I have lost it? Not offend anyone? Not literally shout "JESUS!" during the song that says "shout Jesus from the mountains and Jesus in the streets"? Have people stop taking me seriously? Do people take me seriously at all anyway? Or am I fearful that people might think I have taken this "Jesus thing" a step too far? Ask my husband what he thinks about me and Jesus. My children do not walk with the LORD (currently); what would they think if I were to announce my New Name or share my Revelations? I don't see them that often; maybe they would stop taking my calls altogether. Or maybe their eternity would change if I were more Obedient. (There are 100's or 1000's of Souls tied to our Obedience, but that is for another blog) What would happen if people realized how truly In Love With Jesus I really am? Where does Self Awareness begin and end versus is it really Fear?

Two years ago, I had a series of "discussions" with the LORD regarding the passages In Ezekiel about the Watchman. I told the LORD that I don't want to be a Watchman. I don't want to be responsible for telling people their business, even in matters of Heaven. WHY? Because people will "feel some kind of way" about it, and generally they don't feel good when GOD sends the Watchman. Ezekiel Chapter 3 and Ezekiel Chapter 33 are about the responsibility of the Watchman.

"Son of man, I have appointed you a watchman over the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from My mouth, warn them from Me. When I say to the wicked "You will surely die" and you

do not warn him, or speak out to warn the wicked from his wicked way that he may live, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. Yet, if you have

warned the wicked and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his wicked way, he shall

die in his iniquity, but you have delivered yourself." (Ezekiel 3:17-19)

Obedience. Trust. Responsibility.

This goes on throughout chapter 3, and also in Chapter 33. The task. The assignment. The burden. The blessing. At the time, which was exactly 2 years ago, in June 2023, I was compelled to have a hard, uncomfortable conversation with a friend of 20 years, about the thing the LORD kept revealing to me. And I cried and pleaded with GOD. I was afraid that I would lose my best friend if I came with this word from the LORD. I was afraid of a harsh response; I was afraid of a slammed door in my face; I was afraid of heartbreak; I was afraid of offending someone I love very much; I was afraid of the end of a friendship. But the LORD did not let me off the hook, and I obeyed. And as I sat with my friend at a super-busy restaurant, telling him what the LORD told me to tell him, I cried and cried. I cried so hard that I was shaking, but I was able to share with him the Father's heart. And my friend held me while I cried. And I just know that people thought we were a couple who were breaking up, or that we had just lost a parent, or something else tragic. It was so loud in that restaurant that no one knew what was being said except us 3, him, me and Jesus. And thankfully, my friend listened to me, through the tears. And knew my love for our friendship. And most importantly, knew the love of The Father in his life. I had to obey. I had to obey what the Holy Spirit told me to do, speaking from the Word of God and not my words, and do it with the Radical Love of Jesus. Not for nothing, I felt so much better after that lunch. And I knew that GOD would bless my obedience, no matter the outcome.

But I have prayed since then that the role of the Watchman was a One & Done for me. But I don't think it is. The LORD never stops advancing His Kingdom. The LORD never stops. And our callings are supernatural and eternal, gifts from God, works laid out for us to walk in since before the foundation of time. So where He goes, I go.

In February of this year, I attended a Jesus Retreat "on the Mountain", and it was life changing. I learned so much about HIM and who I am IN HIM and who I am called to be IN HIM. During one of the sessions, a precious man of God was speaking, working us through a lesson, telling an anecdote, and sharing the heart of The Father on some topic or another. It is really odd, because I consider myself a "professional student", and I take tons of notes so that I can go back and study things again, learn things more deeply, remember them, and really get a revelation about them. I remember the man speaking, but I do not remember the topic at all. The whole time he spoke, I was listening; listening with the ears of the Spirit. But not taking any notes. When he was finished with his talk, I was crying, tears streaming down my face, deeply moved, changed somehow from within. And the only thing I had written on my paper underneath the date and time and his name was the words "Just Preach JESUS!" According to my notes, the talk started at 11:30am on February 15, 2025. And those 3 words were the only words I have written.

A lot of other things have happened with Jesus and me lately. More to come, I know. But all of this came flooding to me in the wee hours this morning when I was reliving the message from Sunday morning. "No man, having put his hand to the plough and looking back, is fit for the Kingdom of God". OK, LORD. I hear You. I hear You, and I am going to obey You.

• I AM a watchman.

• I AM a preacher of the Gospel.

• I AM a warrior in the Secret Place and in public places as well.

• I AM laying my hands on the sick and they shall be healed.

• I AM going to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and all the world...aka Jasper, Pickens County, Atlanta, Tanzania...and making disciples and baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

• My hand is on the plough, and I'm not looking back.

• My name is Israel Strong, and I know who I am in Jesus! Every time I study His Word, the Holy Spirit reveals to me who I am to the Father. I am not an Orphan, fatherless and unloved. I am Chosen! I am filled with the power that raised Jesus from the dead! I walk in the Authority of Jesus!

• I haven't taken this "Jesus thing" nearly far enough, so strap in.

• God's call on my life is an answer to the cry of this generation. And honestly, I have to stop caring what other people think. See Exodus 3

• I will worship with abandon! My Love for Jesus doesn't mind looking foolish in the eyes of a lukewarm world. He is EVERYTHING! See 2 Samuel 6

• No one else needs to understand my Call; it wasn't a conference call.

Y'all! Taste and See that the LORD is good!

The birds are singing outside my window, and the sun is now up in My Little Town. I have been awake since 4th Watch, working through all this. I know that He is moving, in my little life and in the World. I am going to close my eyes for a bit, and let Jesus be in charge of all that happens Today. But before I hit the Go Button, allow me to pray for you:

Holy Lord Father,

Thank You for Today! I ask Your Perfect Shalom for all who see this, all who are seeking You right now as the day begins, and all who will call on You this day. Pour out upon them Your Radical Love, Your unmerited favor, Your mercy, new this very morning. Give wisdom liberally this day, as we need Your wisdom so much more than we need the wisdom of this broken world. Make us each a vessel, a conduit of Your Love today, that we can bless one another and walk out a Disciples Life starting now, not looking back. Pour out upon us all Your Holy Spirit. Bless the Church, LORD, Your holy bride. Prepare us as the time is short; change us from within by Your Holy Spirit, that You might find us ready for Your return, without spot or blemish or any such thing. LORD!! We love You! We give You honor and praise and glory! I Your Son's name we pray, JESUS! Amen!