What does it mean to be a disciple of Christ?  I had to go and look up the definition of disciple just to make sure that I was completely clear on what being a disciple is. The first definition that popped us was "a personal follower of Jesus Christ."  How amazing it is that there is a word that is dedicated to express following the Savior. During Christ's ministry on the Earth, there was a price to pay to be a follower of him.  Each one of his disciples suffered a terrible death while continuing Christ's ministry after his death. Although we have the blessing today of being able to worship how we chose, oftentimes we can be ridiculed and shamed for being disciples of Christ.  The price that we pay however, does not overshadow the great blessing that it is to be following in Christ's footsteps, and to be doing all that we can to be more like him. 

According to the list of scriptures that I read (Luke 10:38-42, 11:1-13: 12:13-14: 13:23-24; 14:16-33; 11:5-13) this is my list of what is required to be a disciple of Christ:

One must be able to discern and take part in activites that are MOST important in life. Some things are better than good and these are the things that should get highest attention.  This also plays into the thought that consistent growth and betterment should always be in mind.

Persistent and heartfelt prayers should be administered. Prayer is most effective when you have "a consciousness of real need for prayer and a real trust in God."-James E. Talmage

A follower must beware of being covetous. Preparing spiritually for the future and not after temporal riches should be the goal.  The riches that we should be seeking after are the ones that we can posse eternally.

A disciple must be willing to sacrifice and must have deep humility.

Not being concerned with material things.

Avoids excuses that will hold us back from making changes.

A willingness to serve and build up the kingdom of God in any way possible.

We must meet the requirement of discipleship in order to enter into the strait gate to God's kingdom.  The comparison of the strait and narrow gate against the wide gate can be used to explain that the course one must take to the kingdom of God is a direct and planned path.  There are certain requirements that must be met in order to receive his kingdom.

Something that I would like to make more of a strength in my life is avoiding excuses. There are times when I know that I'm not doing something that I should be, and I use an excuse to rationalize my choice. For example, my scripture study isn't always on point.  I have high and low points where I'll do really great in my studies and other times where I won't think about it for weeks.  When I realize that it's been forever since I've last opened the scriptures, I will use excuses to make myself feel better. "I've been really busy", "I just don't have the time" "I'm up early taking kids to seminary and just can't fit it in."  These are a few of my go to excuses. To better commit myself to being a follower of Christ, I know that I need to cut out the excuses that hold me back from becoming more committed.  

(Luke 14:33; Omni 1:26; Mosiah 2:34 and Matthew 13:44-46) What does it ultimately required to be a disciple of Christ? To be a true disciple of Christ we must be doing everything that the Savior did while here on the Earth.  Just as Elder Holland's quote says, we must be easily recognized by the Savior when he comes again.  The only way that this will be possible is if we are doing his work.  We must be sacrificing our time, talents, resources and any other strength that we have in dedication to his ministry. I love the Savior and his great example of discipleship.  I know that as I tailor my life to become more like his, not only will I have greater joy in my life, I will also be worthy to enter the strait gate to the Lord's kingdom.