The Sacrifice You’ve Been Holding Back
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” Romans 12:1
“My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.” 1 John 3:18
One day I listened to a friend as she quietly, gently, lovingly, opened her heart and shared what it was like donating one of her organs to a woman whom she sincerely wanted to see drawn to God through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. My friend had a medical condition that placed her at greater risk in undergoing the surgery, she knew she might lose some years of her life at the end, she knew she would miss work and pay when her family’s finances were already tight, but none of this stopped her from sacrificing her organ to someone in dire need. She developed medical complications after surgery that necessitated extra care, and yet she did not hesitate to say she would do it all over again. She wanted nothing more nor less than for the recipient of her sacrifice to see the love of Christ in action, to be drawn to God through faith in Christ, and to be physically well. She was utterly clear why she had made the sacrifice.
“I sensed the Holy Spirit tell me to do this,” she told me. And that was that. She loved the Lord and loved her neighbor not merely in words, but in action. In sacrifice. With a heart filled with love, light, humility, and thanksgiving. Despite her recent surgery, she glowed and beamed with the love and joy of God. She shined with the life of Christ.
How many of us, I wonder, say we believe in God, proclaim our faith in Christ as Lord, emphatically declare we love the Lord, yet struggle or even blatantly refuse to make even the smallest sacrifices, like giving up daily Starbucks coffees to give the money instead to someone in need; giving up time with our loved ones to volunteer where God sends us; foregoing a TV program to listen to a hurting friend; giving up season sports tickets to be available to help people in need; forsaking a vacation to go on a missions trip; giving up eating out in restaurants all the time to spend the money instead supporting a missionary; giving up a favorite hobby because God wants us to use that time to love and serve Him and others; freeing up time in our busy schedules to pray for others; reaching out to someone in dire need to proclaim the Gospel of Christ despite our fear of being hated and rejected?
Is there something you have been refusing to sacrifice for God? Are you holding onto your life, or holding onto God and giving Him your life to love and serve Him with all your heart and the gifts He’s given you? It’s time to make the sacrifice God has been telling you to make. For Him!