THOUGHT FOR TODAY: in Honduras you can buy all kinds of “knock offs”, imitations of various designer products. The good news is they don't cost much money; the bad news is they don't hold up under stress. It has occurred to me, there is also such a thing as an imitation of true discipleship; and like any counterfeit it is dangerous. It’s dangerous because just by looking, you can't tell it’s not the real thing. You can find out, however, and a good place to start is with two basic questions, "Does it hold up under stress? How much is it costing you? With regard to our faith, surely Jesus paid it all on a cross at Calvary. At the same time, discipleship has always exacted a substantial cost, just as it did with the first disciples of Jesus. Furthermore, it seems that often a part of the cost is material. Maybe that’s because one of the hardest things for most us to sacrifice is our money.