A God that wants to be next to me.

It is precocious, I think, to title a blog "Next2Christ".
Such a title implies that I am next to Jesus, keeping in step with Him and His desire for my life. It all sounds so simple in a Christian-cliche sort of way, as if Christ and I are holding hands and skipping down the yellow brick road of life until I reach heaven.
The fact is, my walk with Christ sometimes displays a lack of heart, courage, and a brain. Even as a Pastor.

"Next2Christ", then, is not a statement of fact, but an expression of desire. I would like to be, every moment, next to Jesus. I would like to always have the heart of compassion that Christ displays, the courage of my convictions that Christ voices,and a brain not just to understand that  "the square of the length of the hypotenuse of a right triangle equals the sum of the squares of the lengths of the other two sided" but to understand the best way to apply God's Word to my life and how to communicate that to others.

Actually, the blog could easily be called "Next2Gerard" because it is Christ who promises to never leave me nor forsake me. It is Christ who has sent the Holy Spirit to comfort, instruct and guide. It is Christ who draws near to me as I draw near to Him. Too often I am lagging behind or going on ahead of Christ and it is He who waits for me to catch up or to call me back.

So, "Next2Christ" will serve as a travelogue of my journey with Christ through God's Word. It is devotional in nature, personal by design. I hope that I spend more time next to Jesus rather than catching up or falling behind. And if any part of my walk can help your walk, that will work for me.