“Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.’” (Matthew 16:24)
In a story published by Runner’s World, organizers of the Twin Cities Marathon announced that starting in 2027, they plan to move the race to mid-October from its traditional date on the first weekend of the month, citing “heat-related risks” and their hope to improve “the likelihood of ideal race day conditions.” Climate scientists say that eventually most marathons could be affected by rising temperatures, and in a 2026 report, they projected that by the year 2045, the Chicago Marathon, also held in October, will have less than a 25 percent chance of having ideal weather on race day.
Race directors and runners aren’t the only people who pine for ideal conditions. Millions of people around the world today are waiting for the time to be ideal before making the choice to follow Jesus Christ.
But here’s the deal: There will never be an ideal or perfect time to follow Jesus. Why? Because there will never be an easy time to follow Him. Jesus made this very clear when He said to His disciples: “Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” (Matthew 16:24)
You see, we live in a world that wants things effortlessly. We want our meals to be easy, so we eat ultra-processed, ready-to-eat food. We want weight loss to be easy, so we skip the workouts and reach for medicine instead of disciplining the flesh to eat what’s good for us. Let’s face it: We live in a world that, for the most part, rejects and despises discipline.
This is the reason many people wait before denying themselves. Following Jesus takes extreme discipline—the same discipline Jesus showed in fulfilling the mission of walking among us and then dying on the cross:
“From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day. Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, ‘Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!’ But He turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.’” (Matthew 16:21-23)
To understand this more, consider the context of Matthew 16. Jesus had just finished telling His disciples that He was heading to Jerusalem to suffer, die, and be resurrected. Peter immediately pulled Jesus aside to rebuke Him. Peter wanted a crown without a cross. He wanted the kingdom under ideal, comfortable conditions.
Jesus’ response was blistering. He called out satan’s influence on Peter, which had caused him to focus on human comfort rather than divine purpose. The lesson is clear: Following Jesus is inherently inconvenient. It demands self-denial in a world that worships self-gratification. It demands carrying an instrument of death—the cross—in a culture obsessed with comfort. If you wait until it’s easy, safe, or socially acceptable to fully surrender your life to Christ, you’ll wait forever. The world will always provide an excuse to delay obedience.
To truly understand the urgency of “just doing it,” we have to look at the very next verses, where Jesus explains exactly what is at stake:
“For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:25-26)
This is the ultimate cost-benefit analysis. Jesus removes all gray areas and makes it clear that a person cannot sit on the fence. Furthermore, choosing to wait for “better conditions” is actually a choice to reject Him. And the outcome of not following Jesus is catastrophic. You might succeed in preserving your current comfort. You might build a flawless career, protect your social reputation, and accumulate wealth under “ideal” earthly conditions. But in the end, you will have gained nothing. It will all burn up.
So remember this, my friend: Losing eternal rewards doesn’t just happen in a dramatic moment of rebellion. It happens slowly, through a lifetime of saying, “Not yet, Lord. I’ll follow You when things settle down.”
So choose to take up your cross and follow Jesus today, if you haven’t already. It won’t be easy, but it will be worth it.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank You for making it clear that choosing to accept Jesus as our Savior is the ONLY way to salvation. In a world that wants the eternal reward without the earthly restraint, help us to model what it means to follow Jesus with joy so that others will come to understand that trading comfort for the cross brings eternal rewards. It’s in Your precious name we pray, Jesus. Amen.
Happy Running!
Melissa Sharp is an ultra runner and running coach who has completed more than 100 marathons and ultra marathons. Melissa has learned how to keep running the race of life for the glory of Christ even though she endured decades of domestic abuse. Melissa is a survivor. Through her daily blog thejoyfilledrunner she inspires others to live in the strength of Christ.
