One of my favorite things about following Jesus is this:  There. Is. Always. More.

Let those words sink in for a moment.  No matter where you are in your journey right now, these words are true.

But it’s so easy to settle. Perhaps because we’re satisfied far too easily.  We find ourselves glazed over staring at a screen in our hand. Measuring our worth in “likes.” Just doing the minimum. Checking off the boxes.

This lyric in Derek Webb’s song, Wedding Dress, captures it bluntly:

“I am so easily satisfied
by the call of lovers so less wild
That I would take a little cash
Over your very flesh and blood”

We seem to so easily trade the real for the artificial.  This is the work of a thief determined to “steal, kill, and destroy” (John 10:10) fullness of life that has been offered by the author of life to each of us.

It seems that more times than not it’s subtle. Vibrant faith gradually becoming jaded. Joy creeping toward cynicism. Passion devolving into boredom. “This is as good as it gets,” the enemy whispers.  Slowly stealing life, killing hope, and eroding confidence in the Father’s life-giving grace.

The thief enters by “some other way” (John 10:1).  His desire is to infiltrate.  His hope is for the sheep to slowly begin to trust his voice. His determination is to lead the sheep astray – away from the shepherd who knows them best and knows what’s best for them.

In response to the thief’s mission, Jesus announces his own. “I have come that they might have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).  Not just any life and not just easy life. Fullness of life. Beautifully messy life that allows us to awaken each day with what author Mark Batterson calls “holy anticipation.”

This is why Jesus describes himself with two metaphors in John 10. He is “gate” and “shepherd.”   Life through him. Life with him.

This is a gate that, when entered, awakens dreams that have slumbered.  A shepherd who rekindles hopes that have smoldered. A Jesus who speaks life into the dead places of our lives. He is risen. And he is raising you. All of you. To life. To full life.  Now. Forever.

He is a lover of you. Refuse to settle for any “lover less wild.”  Wake up. Rise up. Experience life the way He designed. Full. Free. And embracing that…there is always more.