Listen with your ears, Listen (watch) with your eyes, Listen with your mind,
Listen carefully! Listen to God’s words intently and intentionally.
Listen to what Jesus is saying to you…as if you have received a letter or a phone call, or an e-mail to you from Jesus Himself.

Listen to what Jesus said to His twelve chosen disciples.
Listen as if He is talking to you too.

(Amplified Bible) Luke 9:23 “…‘If any person wills to come after Me, let him deny himself [disown himself, forget, lose sight of himself and his own interests, refuse and give up himself] and take up his cross daily and follow Me [cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to my example in living and, if need be in dying also].”

Consider that Scripture verse quoted above: Jesus was up-front about the hard part of following Him.
1)  It is a matter of my will being activated.
2)  It is a matter of denying selfishness or using self-control throughout my day.
3)  It means where my will crosses God’s will – there I am to yield to God and His ways.
4)  It means I am to conform to the example Jesus has given me by His life and by His death.

 

Submission to God demands a cross –

to deny myself and to yield to His will on a day-by-day basis.

To follow Jesus is to Listen and “come after Me”.  Following Jesus is to trust Him and be confident in His leading because He is God my Savior, my Lord.
To follow Jesus is to rely on Him because my times are in His hands.  (Psalm 31:14-15a

Listen…Jesus says to you…‘come after Me’!

Following Jesus will be sacrificial; it is a matter of your yielded will, your daily choice!

(NIV) Luke 9:23 “…‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.’”

 

To follow Jesus…