The Why of Walking with Jesus. Following Jesus from the Edges.

Walking with Jesus

The Why of Walking with Jesus

Pastor Calvin Cook

July 29, 2026 — Day 18 of 40

Scripture: “Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.’” — Luke 9:23

We are about halfway through these Walking with Jesus devotionals, and recently someone asked me a simple question: “Why?”

Why do you walk with Jesus?

I’ve thought about that question a great deal most of my life. The answer isn’t found in one moment or one experience. It has been the journey of my life. It has been me discerning what comes first, is it choice of religion ? is it surrender? Is it trying to fit in the time? Is it avoiding distraction. This morning the question is stronger than ever before and very personal – Why do I walk with Jesus?

For years I have described my faith as following Jesus from the edges. I have never been the smartest, or the most popular, my scholistic education is very limited, I certainly experience many struggles, and there are many times that the Why is the biggest question in my life.

There have been seasons when I felt close, and seasons when I felt like I was standing on the outside looking in. Yet every time I came honestly before Jesus, I found Him waiting for me—not with condemnation, but with grace. Continually reminded me that He had called me to receive Him as Savior, to follow Him as Lord, and to surrender fully so that His Holy Spirit could shape my life. And the realization that in the grey areas and dark areas of my life was when I wasn’t walking with and or following the Jesus way.

That is why I walk with Jesus. I have found it to be the only way that leads to what I long for the most : hope, joy, peace, contentment, and certainly love.

I want to tell you about my friend John.

John has become much more than an acquaintance. Through our shared faith, he has become a brother. Like me, John has known trials. He has faced temptations. He has experienced hardships. Neither of us is perfect, but we both desire the same thing—to be fully committed followers of Jesus Christ.

I still remember the first email John ever sent me. At the bottom, where most people simply write their name, he signed it:

“Walking with Jesus, John.”

Through John’s witness and living a life that mirrors Jesus. Those three words have stayed with me. John is not simply ending an email. John is making a declaration about who he is. Before any title, accomplishment, or opinion, John desires people to know what matters most: Walking with Jesus.

That challenges me. To know, and share what is important. Not just accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior of my life, not just surrender to the will of God, not just receiving a “get out of hell” free card, but actually walking with and in the way of Jesus.

Nothing else should compare with our walk with Jesus. What if that became the defining statement of our lives? Not just something we say in church, but something that is evident in the way we live, love, forgive, serve, and hope.

So today I ask you the same question I was asked.

Why do you walk with Jesus?

Is Jesus simply part of your life, or is He the One leading your life?

Perhaps today is the day to step out from the edges and say with confidence, “I am a follower of Jesus Christ.” Or if you have never made that commitment, to just humbly say to Jesus. “I want to walk with you Jesus, forgive my sins, I surrender to you, show me the way.” That is where a walk with Jesus begins, that is where new life begins, that is where eternity begins, that is where we begin to understand.

Because in the end, the “why” is not about religion. It is about a relationship with the One who first loved us, gave His life for us, and now invites us every day to walk beside Him.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, thank You for calling me to follow You. Help me to surrender more fully each day, to walk faithfully in Your footsteps, and to never be ashamed to say that I belong to You. May my life point others to You, and may my greatest identity always be this: I am walking with Jesus. Amen