The experience of following Jesus sometimes makes us feel like children trying to learn a recipe from a parent. In order to get what we want in the end, we've got to patiently listen and wait at all the right moments and follow the direction being given. In the Bible, Jesus made several requests of those who followed him, and his questions always revealed what was important to him, inviting others to think and live and be like him. In one famous exchange, Jesus told a group of uber-religious and super-spiritual folks that he'd rather they learn compassion than continue on with their showy demonstrations of spirituality.