I Hate My Life!

I hate my family!

I wish I could say that. I wish I could say that my life lines up with Luke 14:26. Listen to this: If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

Heavy words; I was reminded of them in my morning reading. Here is what it said:

Can You Hate Your Family?

Luke 14:26 -27

Many passages of Scripture encourage us to love our families. That is why it's startling to read Jesus' statement in Luke 14:26 -27. He used the word rendered "hate" in reference to our families. In other words, we are to love Christ so much, that even our families take second place to Him. This instruction was especially relevant in Jesus' day, for deciding to become His disciple often meant rejection by family as well as persecution and possibly even death.

All of us have accumulated possessions and made relationships that are precious to us. We sometimes sacrifice time and energy to preserve them. Family members can easily win so much of our attention that they sidetrack God's call for us to be committed followers of Christ.

Here's the unspoken challenge for us as men of God. The Lord has called us to lead our families to the same level of devotion that He wants us to have. In other words, they must give Jesus first place in their lives. You and they undoubtedly will be rejected by some. As disciples, you and your family must be ready to face and accept such rejection. With God's help, you can!

Dear Lord, please give me and my family the strength to remain committed followers of Your Son, regardless of the personal cost. Amen.

From God's Man
A Daily Devotional Guide to Christlike Character
Edited by: Don M. Aycock


We get the full meaning as we look at Matthew 10:37 where it says: Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. So the issue is comparison. Do I love Jesus more? Do I care more about what He says? Do I care more about what He thinks of me? Is my devotion so radical that in comparison it seems that I don’t care about my family at all?

Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. (John 12:25)

And what about me? What about my life? Is my commitment to Jesus supreme or do I care more about ME?

I will remember these words the next time I hear a teenager say, I hate my life or I hate this family. Maybe they are on to something. Maybe they can learn a little from the words of Jesus.

Philip