The Blessing of Giving Up
Like most parents, my life was profoundly changed by the arrival of a little human being that belonged to me. My wife and I went from a “couple” to a “family,” and we felt blessed to have children brought into our lives. Parenthood is a blessing, but it is also a sacrifice. I’m not certain that I’ve truly slept in the past six years! Long nights and early mornings; good restaurants traded in for ones that serve chicken nuggets; sports games replaced by princess movies and incessant choruses belted out that remind me to “let it go.” It requires a sacrifice of time, energy, money, focus, attention, love, and tranquility.
Yes, it is a sacrifice. But it is one that I make willingly for the joyful blessing of watching my daughters grow into the people God has made them become. To see them have a chance at LIFE makes it all worthwhile.
What would you be willing to lay aside for the good of someone else?
Back in the 18th and 19th centuries, missionaries departing overseas would often pack their belongings into coffins, knowing that some (if not all) of the family would die in a foreign land to share the gospel.
Firefighters run into a burning building rather than away from it, with the purpose of saving the life of a person in need.
Members of our armed forces run toward the sound of the fighting, knowing that freedom isn’t free and that some might have to pay the ultimate sacrifice so others can live.
Healthcare workers are currently sacrificing their time, energy, health, and even their lives as they fight on the front lines of a pandemic. This is true on normal days, but especially highlighted during these current events. Many are quarantining away from their families to lessen the odds of bringing the disease home.
Teachers are going above and beyond with their students since they cannot be in the classroom. Many are working even longer hours to make the time spent in home education a blessing by creating lesson plans, hunting down resources, and facilitating classroom meetings so the kids can stay in touch.
What would you be willing to lay aside for the good of someone else? Would you be willing to give up your seat? Your lunch? Your comfort? Your time? Your money (or at least some of it)? What about your “rights”?
What might you be willing to give up so that others might have life?
On the night before he died, Jesus stopped to have a meal with his closest followers. He knew it was his last night on earth before his death, and Jesus chose to give of himself. Knowing that “the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God” (John 13:3), Jesus took off his outer garment, picked up a towel, a bowl, and a bar of soap, and took the most menial and maligned job assigned to the lowest slave: washing feet. All so he could serve and set an example for his followers. Then Jesus began describing how he was going to die and go away, but it was for their benefit. And during that conversation, Jesus made a bold statement: “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: To lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:12-13).
Are you willing to lay down your life for the sake of your friends? John goes on to ask that same question of Jesus’s followers in his first epistle:
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. (1 John 3:16-18)
The early church wrestled with this concept. What should I give up for the sake of others? If the foods I eat cause others to stumble, I will give those up. If my traditions cause others to fall away, I’ll become all things to all people. Because sacrifice is worth it if it helps others know life.
Jesus calls us to a life of self-sacrifice. Bonhoeffer was right in stating, “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come, and die.” [1] While we might not physically die for our faith, we might be called to put to death some of our preferences – and even our rights – for the sake of others or the good of the kingdom.
What might you be willing to give up so that others might have life?
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[1] The Cost of Discipleship, 99.
