Luke 9:61 - “Still another said, ‘I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.’” There have always been people who say they want to follow Jesus, but only on their terms. That was the situation with the guy in today’s Scripture. He sounded like he was all in, but then came the stipulation: “but first”, which is pretty crazy when you think about it. He calls Jesus “Lord” - a title of complete authority. Then he basically tells Jesus that he is really in charge: “but first”. That is what our stipulations do - they reveal that we really want to be in control of our lives. We’ll be glad to let Jesus be in charge as long as we can set the agenda. We say, “I will follow Jesus, but first. . . “ and then fill in the blank with our demands. “But first, God has to answer my prayer.” “But first God has to take away the pain.” “But first I need to know the details.” The “but first” attitude puts me on the Throne and seeks to make God bow to my agenda. Awful. Every time I do that it ends in disaster. Completely predictable. To “follow” Jesus literally means that He takes the lead, He is in front, and He is in charge. He is first. No stipulations, no demands. And that is not only the right move but the best one. He is our “Good Shepherd”. He knows us, He knows our path, and He loves us eternally. So how about you? Is there some place in your life where you are telling Jesus, “but first”?