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All to Jesus

Recently, I was listening to a pastor speak about worship and he made the statement, "I never sing anything I don't mean." That statement came back to me with force this morning. Of course, being Palm Sunday, we are singing many songs about the cross. How about this line: "I believe in a hill called Mount Calvary. I'll believe whatever the cost." Just let that sink in for a minute....whatever the cost...hmmmm. How about this old favorite invitation hymn: "All to Jesus I surrender, all to Him I freely give." Everything? No matter the cost? Just how far am I willing to take this, anyway?

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship." Romans 12:1

A living sacrifice.... Sacrifices in the scripture usually involved the loss of life. Dictionary.com says a sacrifice is "The surrender or destruction of something prized or desirable for the sake of something considered higher...". Another favorite song: "Take my life, lead me Lord.."

So what does total surrender REALLY look like? I'm thinking it's more than just Church on Sunday. So I ask myself the hard questions
* What if God calls me to another place?
* What if God asked me to sell all I have?
* what if God calls me to lay down my life?

Or maybe He just wants me to swallow my pride and witness to my waiter or give up one evening a week for outreach...

I don't really know how to bring this to a close because I am still doing the self examination. But am I really ready to give up whatever He asks no matter the cost? To surrender all? To let Him take my life and make me a living sacrifice?

What I do know is this: This is exactly what He did for me. He left a home behind that I cannot even imagine. He gave up all He had in Heaven, moved to another place, witnessed to his waiter (and hundreds more), and then laid down his life.

In Philippians 3:10, Paul says he wants to know Christ so much that he wants to share His suffering and become like Him in His death. Why? Because his eye is on the prize. In verse 14, he says His prize is heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Oh, that I would have the passion to know Christ and the willingness to surrender that Paul had. Until then, I am a work in progress. Oh, wait, another song: "He's still workin on me..to make me what I ought a be..." LaLaLa....

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