"Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." ~ Matthew 16:24
On this past weekend, the Praise Team at my church sang a song that touched my heart. The words include the following:
“I give myself away,
I give myself away so you can use me,
I give myself away.
My life is not my own,
to you I belong,
I give myself,
I give myself to you.”
These words may seem very simple when you read them, but when I sung them, I began to remember that my life is truly not my own. I was bought with a price. He that knew no sin gave up His life for me and for you. He was tortured, humiliated and crucified so that the penalty for my sins and your sins would be paid. Then, on the third day He arose, so that we could have new life… eternal life with Him and our Father.
Do you realize that your life is not your own? Do you realize that we have much work to do in the Kingdom of God and that the Lord wants to use us? We must realize that our journey is about not just seeking the Kingdom of God, but also about building the Kingdom of God. We have to be about our Father’s work, because time is winding up and Jesus is soon to return.
So let us deny ourselves and live and work for the Lord on a daily basis, not just Sundays and Wednesdays. Every day that we awaken, is a day that we should be giving more and more of ourselves to God for His use, for “the harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few” (Matthew 9:37).
Elder Carol Tolbert
