Let the Dead Bury their Own Dead

I was reading this morning in Matthew and came across the following verses in Chapter 8:

18When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he gave orders to cross to the other side of the lake. 19Then a teacher of the law came to him and said, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go."
20Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head."

21Another disciple said to him, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father."

22But Jesus told him, "Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead."

For some reason verse 21 really captured my attention. "Lord, first let me go and bury my father." Jesus' response is clear where our priorities should lay. As I continued to read over this passage I realized that my bible was saying something else:

"Anne said to him, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father."

But Jesus told her, "Follow me!"

This would be my exact response. If I was standing next to Jesus, and he asked me to follow him but someone in my family was sick or had died, what would I do? What do I do anytime God asks me to follow him and his direction is different or more challenging than my own? I typically say, "Sure God, I'll follow you. But first, I need to...."

Next time, I hope my response is "Yes!" without hesitation.