Following Jesus Will Ruin Your Life
The American Dream vs. The Call of Christ
Most people have a vision for their lives that fits a familiar mold: a loving, presentable family, a comfortable home in the suburbs, late-model cars parked in the driveway, and maybe even a boat for weekend getaways on the lake. The dream includes a career that is both fulfilling and financially rewarding, a strong church community, and the ability to retire comfortably at 65, free to travel and enjoy the fruits of years of hard work.
This is what many see as a successful, meaningful life. It’s the ideal that keeps people motivated—studying hard, climbing the corporate ladder, making strategic financial decisions, and planning for the future. It’s a life of security, predictability, and relative ease. This is the American Dream. And on the surface, it seems like a good life.
But Jesus never called His followers to a life of comfort, security, or personal success. In fact, His invitation was quite the opposite. Following Jesus the way the Bible expects, is nothing like ‘the good life.’ Following Jesus will ruin your life—or at least the life you think you want.
Jesus’ Invitation to Follow
When Jesus called His disciples, He didn’t invite them to a comfortable, suburban life. He called them to abandon everything they knew and step into radical obedience.
Peter, Andrew, James, and John were fishermen. Jesus walked by and simply said, “Follow me,” and they left their nets—immediately (Matthew 4:18-22). No time to plan, no waiting for a retirement package—just an abrupt departure from their livelihoods.
Matthew was a tax collector, a profession that provided financial stability. Yet when Jesus said, “Follow me,” Matthew stood up, left everything, and followed Him (Luke 5:27-28).
The Rich Young Ruler came seeking eternal life but walked away sorrowful because Jesus told him to sell everything and give to the poor (Matthew 19:16-22). He loved his wealth too much to trade it for true discipleship.
Jesus' invitation wasn’t just about believing in Him; it was about leaving everything to walk in His footsteps. And that path was anything but easy.
The Reality of True Discipleship
Being a disciple of Jesus wasn’t just about attending a weekly gathering or saying a prayer. It was a radical reorientation of life.
No Stability – Jesus Himself had “nowhere to lay His head” (Luke 9:58). His disciples followed Him from town to town, relying on the hospitality of strangers and the provision of God.
Constant Sacrifice – They gave up businesses, families, and comfort to follow their Rabbi. They didn’t have the luxury of building a financial nest egg or planning for a secure future.
Facing Opposition – Jesus warned them they would be hated, persecuted, and even put to death for following Him (Matthew 10:22, John 15:18-20).
Total Commitment – He made it clear: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23). The cross wasn’t a symbolic inconvenience; it was a death sentence.
If you truly follow Jesus, it will mess up your neatly arranged plans. It doesn’t mean you won’t have a family, a home, or a career—but it does mean those things will no longer be the goal. Jesus redefines everything:
Your Career Becomes Your Ministry – You may still work in business, education, or healthcare, but your job is no longer about climbing the ladder; it’s about being a light in a dark world and making disciples wherever you are. A true disciple of Jesus sees their career as a tool to share the gospel with people in that field. Question: Do your coworkers know you as a person who is most passionate about your relationship with Jesus and are always pointing them to Him?
Your Finances Aren’t Yours – The dream of a comfortable retirement fades when you realize your wealth is meant to serve God’s kingdom, not just your own security. Radical generosity becomes the norm. The needs and hurts of this world, and meeting those needs in order to direct people to God become priorities over savings accounts, newer cars, bigger homes, and fancy vacations. Not that you can never enjoy any of those things, but you sacrifice more than you enjoy for the sake of the Kingdom. Question: Do the needs of the world stir you to compassion where your finances are viewed as God’s resources to accomplish His will?
Your Comfort Is No Longer a Priority – God may call you to missions, inner-city ministry, or to serve the least of these. Your weekends may be spent serving rather than relaxing. You may find yourself changing diapers and rocking babies in the nursery week after week at church. You may find yourself giving up the all-inclusive resort for a cheap plane ticket to Haiti to serve meals and interact with kids at an orphanage.
Your Family Looks Different – Instead of being a picture-perfect unit focused inward, your home becomes a place of hospitality, discipleship, and self-sacrifice. Your entertainment boundaries may look extreme and radical to your friends and neighbors. You may find yourself fostering and adopting long after your child-rearing days are over. You may find people at your house multiple days of the week in order to serve them, feed them, or worship together.
Jesus doesn’t promise that you’ll lose everything, but He does demand that you be willing to lose anything for Him (Luke 14:26-27). And the truth is, the more closely you follow Him, the less appealing the old dreams will become.
The Joy of a Life Poured Out
So why follow Jesus if it ruins everything? Because what you gain is infinitely greater than what you lose.
True Purpose – Instead of chasing temporary success, you live for an eternal kingdom. Your life has real impact. Your purpose literally as eternal implications and purpose.
Genuine Joy – Wealth, status, and comfort have never satisfied anyone. Just look at the dozens of interviews with celebrities and athletes and lottery winners that claim those things have made their lives worse off. But a life surrendered to Christ brings a joy that can’t be shaken (John 15:11). There is an unmeasurable, unexplainable joy that can only be accounted to God.
A Family Beyond Blood – The church becomes your family in a way that transcends genetics. Though you may have biological family and friends that reject your extremism, and therefore reject you, what you gain is more than fulfilling. Brothers and sisters in Christ walk with you in deep, sacrificial love.
A Secure Future – Not in retirement accounts, but in the promise of eternity with Jesus. You may not leave yourself enough money to play for the last 20-40 years of life, but you’re setting yourself up for an eternity of comfort, rest, and joy. The sacrifices of this life pale in comparison to the glory that awaits (Romans 8:18).
The Cross Before the Crown
Following Jesus will wreck your life, but only in the best way possible. It will strip away the false securities, the empty pursuits, and the fleeting pleasures. It will cost you dearly. But in return, you’ll gain a joy, peace, and purpose that nothing in this world can match.
So count the cost. Jesus never sugarcoated the price of discipleship. But He also made one thing clear: losing your life for His sake is the only way to truly find it (Matthew 16:25).
Ruined for the Better
Ethan Reynolds had everything a man could want. At 32, he had built an impressive career at a prestigious investment firm, growing not only his clients' portfolios but his own wealth as well. He had the house in the suburbs, the sleek sports car, the all-inclusive vacations, and, most importantly, a beautiful wife, Laura, who stayed home to care for their four children. Their life was picture-perfect—the kind of dream that others envied.
But all of that changed one unsuspecting Mother’s Day when they accepted an invitation to attend church with Laura’s mom. It was meant to be a simple gesture of kindness, a way to honor her mother. Instead, it became the moment that turned their lives upside down.
The message that morning was about surrender—a concept Ethan had never truly considered. The preacher spoke about Jesus' call to leave everything behind and follow Him. It was a message of radical transformation, of giving up worldly ambitions for something greater. It struck a chord deep within Ethan and Laura. By the time the final hymn was sung, they knew something had shifted in their hearts.
That afternoon, instead of discussing upcoming investments and vacation plans, they talked about faith, sacrifice, and what it meant to truly follow Jesus. By evening, they had made a decision that would change everything: they would no longer live for themselves but for Christ.
The first to go were their financial priorities. Ethan, once obsessed with building wealth, started reevaluating everything. They downsized their home, sold the sports car, and cut back on luxury vacations. They redirected their funds toward missions, local charities, and those in need. Instead of merely managing portfolios, Ethan found himself investing in people’s lives.
Their weekends changed, too. Sundays were no longer reserved for leisure but for worship and serving in their new church community. Saturday afternoons, once spent at the country club, became opportunities to volunteer at shelters and food banks. The children, once accustomed to a life of privilege, began to experience the joy of giving rather than just receiving.
At first, friends and colleagues were baffled. Some thought they had lost their minds; others admired their convictions but couldn’t understand the drastic shift. Ethan even faced resistance at work. His peers no longer saw him as the aggressive, profit-driven investor but as someone distracted by his newfound faith. Offers for promotions and high-profile deals slowly diminished. And yet, despite the financial setbacks, Ethan felt freer than ever before.
Afternoons with his family also took on new meaning. Instead of coming home late and exhausted from work, he prioritized spending time with Laura and the kids. They read the Bible together, played board games, and went on simple nature walks instead of extravagant trips. Laughter replaced the stress that once dominated their home.
As time passed, Ethan and Laura found themselves more fulfilled than they had ever been. They no longer measured success by bank statements or material possessions but by the depth of their faith and the love they poured into others. They missed none of the luxuries they had sacrificed because what they had gained was immeasurably greater.
One evening, Ethan sat on the porch, watching his children play in the yard. Laura sat beside him, her hand in his. "Do you regret it?" she asked softly.
He smiled, shaking his head. "Not for a second. Our old life? It felt like we had everything, but we were empty. Now? Now we have nothing compared to before, but I feel like we have everything."
She nodded, squeezing his hand. "Ruined in the best way possible."
Ethan chuckled. "Exactly."
And as the sun set on their simpler, yet infinitely richer life, Ethan knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that following Jesus had wrecked their plans—but in the best way imaginable.
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