Letting Go of Self

Now that I’m a father, I’m going to have to learn to put someone else’s needs before my own. I am now responsible for a little girl who, at this stage in her life, cannot do anything for herself. Every one of her needs is supplied by her mother and me, from the food that she eats to her diapers when they need changing. That kind of attention requires a lot of time and energy—time and energy that used to be devoted to my own selfish pursuits. I had to give them up. My life now belongs to someone else.

The selfless act of parenting well illustrates the attitude every Christian ought to have toward Christ. Before any man can follow Jesus, he has to learn to let go of his own selfish pursuits. Jesus told His disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Mt. 16:24). Paul put it this way: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Gal. 2:20).

Does letting go of self rob us of any joy we might have otherwise experienced? Certainly not! Parents are more than happy to put the needs of their little ones before their own. Children do not diminish the joys of life; they add to them! (Ps. 127:3-5). Likewise, giving yourself over to Christ will not dampen the experiences of life; it will only make them better! In the end, no matter how many sacrifices we make, God always makes sure His children get back more than they gave.

Why not make your life a living sacrifice to God? Only then will you realize what God has in store for you.