I wonder what would it be like if we all laid down our lives for one another? Think about it. It sounds good, doesn’t it? Yet, somehow, in the middle of all that consumes our day, laying down our lives gets lost in the fog, overshadowed by busy as we ourselves strive for significance. Can our lives really be all about others?
It is not our instinct to put others over self. It does not come naturally to give up our comfort to make others more comfortable. We can reason that Jesus could do it because He’s the son of God and he was born to lay His life down. Right? And in our reasoning we lose sight of the fact that so were we.
What does it look like to lay down our lives for one another? I’m still not quite sure.Yet, when I collapse into my comfortable warm bed and release that heavy sigh, wondering if I can continue, if I have it in me to keep going, I reflect on the day, the week, the weekend. In the moments of complete empty, I can’t help but feel the overwhelming presence and pleasure of our heavenly Father. We witness the joy on the faces of others, the laughter of people who feel safety in the hope of the house of God. We gaze on the truly miraculous in lives transformed. And, as I consider what we do, how we’ve poured out all that we are in those few moments, I am consumed with unbelievable joy. I don’t think I’ve yet begun to fully comprehend what it looks like to lay my life down for others, but I think I’ve seen a glimpse of it in the faces of those we serve. I think I’ve felt the satisfaction of giving my all for the one who gave it all. The joy expressed in us and through us when we lay our lives down for others is far more satisfying than anything else we could ever do.
Jesus’ words….”you are not far from the kingdom of God.” so resonates with my heart. Laying down our lives for others is God’s way of giving us a glimpse of the kingdom of God. I encourage you today to live your lives in sacrifice for others. Let God use you to change the world around you. Instead of reaching out your hands to strive and grasp for more -Reach out your hands to give. Give all that you are with all that you’ve got to make someone else’s life a little bit better. I can promise you, at the end of the day, at the end of this life on earth, it will have been completely and utterly worth it!
The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. 18No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.” John 10:17
