God gives us so many opportunities every day to say yes to Him. All it takes is courage and a willingness to give up excuses. I should know: I am the queen of excuses. Often I put my “well-being” above over what I know God is asking me to do, making the excuse that I won’t get a good night’s sleep because it will take extra time out of my day or my body won’t be able to handle it. I treat myself as though I am so fragile, even though God made us so resilient and able to handle more than we think we ever could. This is not to say that we should constantly be risk-seeking and doing crazy things “in the name of Jesus”; rather it means the good old Bible definition of sacrifice: laying down our lives for the cross, even if that means we have to give up our health, time, energy, or money. God will make up for it in the end- whatever we give Him will be given back to us a thousand times over and more. It’s worth it.
Sometimes saying yes is as simple as going on a run with a friend when you don’t feel like it, and the fulfillment that comes with getting to know her better and learn more about yourself. Sometimes it is as huge as dedicating three months of your life to a mission trip in Haiti. Whatever you are saying yes to, if it is from God, it is significant and has eternal implications. It’s so easy to prioritize “important” things over the one thing that matters most: Jesus. Yes, school is important, staying healthy is important, getting a good night’s sleep is important; but when they become more important than God they can become forms of idolatry. We have to be willing to give up everything, every last thing, for Jesus.
Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it. -Matthew 10:39
rhythms of grace 