Sometimes You Have to be Cold for Jesus.

My grandfather baptized me in the creek near our home when I was somewhere between the ages of eight and ten. I remember wading out into the chilly water, shivering while he gave his brief talk. Somewhere in there, he said, "Sometimes you have to be cold for Jesus." I am not really sure why he said that, and looking back, I am not sure where he was in his own relationship with Jesus at the time. Still, those words stuck with me.

I thought of those words they day I found myself shivering at the graveside of a college friend's grandmother. I had driven my friend and I there in a borrowed car. It was rather outrageous thing to do, but I believed that God wanted me to do it. So I did. Sometimes you have to be cold for Jesus.

I have been in relationships and relational settings where people were cold. When called to be there, though, faith compelled me to stay. Sometimes you have to be cold for Jesus.

Two of our elders at church recently preached from Hebrews 5:8, about how Jesus learned obedience through suffering. Jesus, perfect though he was, had to gain the experiencing of earthly suffering in order to be a perfect substitute for our sins. He probably got cold in his 33 years of life on earth, and her certainly experienced frigid responses from people.

Being cold in a temperature sense, or even in a relational sense, is small suffering compared to what Jesus suffered on the cross. It is "light" in comparison with the persecution believers endure around the world. Still, it is a struggle, and one that reminds me that following Jesus is a choice. My baptism was my confession of my choice, and to this day, those words, "Sometimes you have to be cold for Jesus" remind me of it.