As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”

Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”

He said to another man, “Follow me.”

But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”

Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”

Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.”

Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” Luke 9:57-62

            Is there a good excuse to not follow Jesus?  No, but some will try.

            Some will say they want to follow Jesus, but Jesus says, “Hey, I’m homeless.  You ready to live my life?”  That would shut people down.

            Some say, “I have important family matters to attend to, like burying my dad.”  Jesus says, “Don’t put dead things ahead of me.  I’m here for life and you’re worried about death?” 

            Some will say, “I have to tell my family where I’m going.”  Jesus says, “Really?  Who’s permission do you seek?  Mine or your mommy?”

            While some of these reasons sound reasonable, Jesus knew that people would get caught up in the moments and forget their commitments to God.  They would add one more day to their home visit, then find some chores to do, and the next thing you know, the commitments to Jesus are forgotten.  Make Jesus the priority and everything else will take care of itself.