We are inherently afraid of not knowing what comes next. That fear drives us to a desire to make our lives predictable. We want to know what’s coming and what to expect. We want a sense of control.

You were not created for a predictable life. Your design is not for settling into pattern and routine with guaranteed outcomes and known timelines. Why do you think God gave you the ability to create and change? Why do you think he placed unattainable dreams within your soul? Why do you think he made scrapes and bruises to heal? So you would get up and keep going. So you would have a pull towards something more. So you would dare to believe you can be part of something bigger than just yourself.

Jesus walked up to 2 brothers fishing at the Sea of Galilee and he simply said “Come, follow me.” An invitation into the unknown. An offering of adventures in uncharted territories. An opportunity to taste their destiny. Matthew 4:20 says “At once they left their nets and followed him.”

Their nets represented the predictable pattern and routine of their life. They knew how to fish. Their identity was as fishermen. It was certain if they continued to throw out the nets, eventually they would bring in a catch. Their lives were predictable as fishermen. Leaving their nets to follow Jesus represented the unknown. It represented the unpredictable. It represented a sacrifice of the certain for a chance at destiny.

They left their nets at once and followed Jesus. These 2 brothers were Simon and Peter and their worlds radically changed in that moment. They walked with Jesus everywhere he went and took part in life changing miracles we still talk about today.

What about all the stories we don’t know? How many others received the invitation to “follow me”, but just couldn’t let go of a predictable life to accept the offer?

Where in your life has Jesus said “follow me” and you totally missed the opportunity because of your busy calendar, your important job, your rigid routine, or the finely constructed walls of your comfort zone? You want predictable and Jesus doesn’t offer predictable, he offers purpose.

We talk a lot about purpose, but here’s something you need to know … purpose is totally unpredictable. You may think you know the path of your purpose, but God may have some twists and turns you didn’t see coming. Purpose is always unfolding and revealing itself along the way. It’s a lifelong journey into the unknown following the one who knows.

The 2 fishermen had no idea where they were going, but Jesus did. They couldn’t take their nets with them, and you can’t take your security with you either. Whatever you’re clinging to is a total sense of false security. That job could end tomorrow. The house could be gone in an instant. That life is fragile, days are numbered, and you don’t know the count. You’ve been working to make your life predictable, but the truth is life is totally unpredictable and you’re right in the middle of it.

Both faith and fear demand you believe in something you cannot see. Think about that. Fear is dwelling on a potential negative that is still unseen. Faith is dwelling on a potential positive that is still unseen. God repeatedly tells us in his word DO NOT FEAR.

Why? Because this dwelling on a potential negative and imagining what is still unseen to be something bad is hindering you from the life he has available to you.

Why would you assume this is going to be bad for you? Why would you imagine negative outcomes? Why would you dwell in worst case scenario? You can’t obediently follow when fear rules your mind.

You can’t see the future, so why fear the future? You can’t see it, so imagine it different. That’s faith. It’s still unseen, but it’s trusted. It’s an obedient following and dropping anything that would hold you back.

A rich young man once approached Jesus and asked him how he could follow him to eternal life. In Matthew 19:21-22 Jesus says “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

Oh, another invitation to follow. But it says “When the young man heard this, he went away in sorrow, because he had great wealth.”

Was Jesus saying to follow him you have to give away everything? Was that the point of the lesson? I don’t believe so. This was a rich young man who had accumulated many things. These things had become his identity. This was his predictable life. And Jesus was saying you have to give up your predictable life to follow me. The rich young man missed his opportunity because he chose what he knew on his own over the unknown with Jesus.

How could his life have changed? What greater things beyond his riches could he have found if he would have followed Jesus? What miracles could he have been an active part of? What purpose could have awaited … well he never knew.

I can’t live with never knowing. I desperately want to know what Jesus has for me. I choose an unpredictable life following Him. I choose faith over fear, knowing that’s simply a shift in attitude over what I cannot see. My identity will be in him, not in what I do or what I have.

Will you follow him too? Will you choose the unknown with the all-knowing? Will you continually choose faith over fear in all you don’t know and can’t see? Will you trust that God is leading you somewhere greater than you could have ever gone on your own?

Jesus has an invitation for you this morning. Come, follow me. What will you be leaving behind to step into your destiny with him?

We are afraid of not knowing what comes next, so we make our lives predictable. Don’t be afraid of what comes next. You can’t see it, so you get to choose … fear or faith. Both demand you believe in something you cannot see. Only faith allows you to follow.

The fishermen chose faith and they followed. The rich young man chose fear and he missed out.

Now it’s your turn to choose. Will you choose faith or will you choose fear? Will you follow into the unknown, or will you cling to the predictable life you’ve worked so hard to build? What do you need to drop right here, right now, to fully trust and follow in faith?