Corona Devo 317

 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? (Mark 8:36)

What does "the whole world" look like to us?  Would it be gaining a lot of money?  Status?  Cool friends?  Good kids?  A great job?  Not having to have a job?  

If someone were to ask what your greatest heart's desire would be--what would it be?  Would we forfeit "our soul" to attain it?  Are we forfeiting our souls to attain it?

The path of a Christ-seeker is a circular one, and I don't think we ever (quite) get off the merry-go-round of: 

Yearning-for-more/Seeking-Christ/Doing-God's-will/Getting-tripped-up-in-our-own-self-focus...  

Yearning-for-more/Seeking-Christ/Doing-God's-will/Getting-tripped-up-in-our-own-self-focus... 

Yearning-for-more/Seeking-Christ/Doing-God's-will/Getting-tripped-up-in-our-own-self-focus...

It's a cycle and journey.  

If we are serious about chasing after Christ, we gain wisdom as we work through the cycle, but we are always working through the cycle.  

(34) Then, calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me.  (Mark 8:34)

Jesus calls to everyone (the crowd), and He welcomes us to join those already following Him (his disciples).  

No experience necessary.  No hierarchy-of-believers or status-of-sinners: If any of you wants to be my follower...

Jesus keeps His invitation simple but He is honest about the cost:  “you must give up your own way,  take up your cross, and follow me." (Mark 8:34).  

Give up our own way?  God means for us to give up our own way (self-focus, self-entitlement, self-pity, self-promotion) and yield to His way.  Let's just get this out in the open--Giving up our own way is contrary to human nature.  It's hard.  But God has it right there in black and white: If we want to be His follower, we have to give up our own way.

Take up our cross?  Even the sound of that is difficult, but living it?  Facing the sin in our hearts and our lives and dealing with it instead of excusing it and rationalizing it?  If any of you wants to be my follower, you must...take up your cross.  (Mark 8:34)

And follow me.  Not "follow our heart" or "follow our dreams" or "follow the money".  If any of you wants to be my follower, you must...follow me.  (Mark 8:34)

This Jesus-stuff is hard!  The world's measures of success are in complete opposition to Christ's.  But the irony is that only when we chase hard after Christ will we be truly fulfilled.  As we struggle to grasp and maintain the physical and emotional spoils of this world, we become less and less satisfied.  (Have you noticed?)  But as we let all of that go and give up our own way/take up our cross/follow Him there is a contentment and fulfillment that settles over our spirit and life.  Jesus (of course) says it better than me:

(35) If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it. (36) And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? (37) Is anything worth more than your soul?  ~Mark 8:35-37

No, nothing is worth more than our soul.  Not that title.  Not that job.  Not that salary.  Not that "I told you so".  Not that clique.  Not that click.  Not that temptation.  Not that lie.  Not that "just this one time".  

Is anything worth more than your soul? 

Our Creator knows what makes us tick (Yearning-for-more/Seeking-Christ/Doing-God's-will/Getting-tripped-up-in-our-own-self-focus...), and although the world pulls us one way, He created us to be most fulfilled by Him and His plans for us.  

It's a cycle and journey.  

Today, let's step into the Seeking-Christ/Doing-God's-will parts of the cycle.  He's given us directions for the journey:  If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. (Mark 8:34).

Blessings,

sarah

https://sarahsundy04.blogspot.com/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Corona Devo 1156

Image
At work, we provide Trainings for customers, so that they can be updated and educated on all of the latest features (and how to use them) within our product.  Many companies do this--sharing "Best Practices" are a way to ensure positive outcomes on the customer and vendor sides of things. My kids often offer me "life hacks" that they have learned from watching an online video promising to "save time" and "make your life easier".  And just this week, my husband enlightened me about the "tear-away" feature built into most plastic rings holding cans/bottles of pop or Gatorade together.  When separated, the plastic rips open easily, releasing the bottle--saving wildlife that might be caught if it is discarded as trash, and saving me  frustration or angst because I no longer have to pull with all my might to get a bottle out of the plastic rings.  ( Who knew? )  Life hacks do save time and make your life easier! Who couldn't benefit from
Read more

Corona Devo 1217

Image
The unanswered “why’s” of life, the disorder of our days, and even the unfairness of our struggles can cause us to question ourselves and also to question our God. But the order-of-Creation and the systems that God has set in place are undeniable answers that swing back and forth like God’s pendulum-reminder that He set the world in motion, and He continues to keep order, even when it seems as if we and our world are in dis- order.   Job was a man going through some heavy and hard stuff.   Maybe we are too.   Job’s trials had caused him to question the order of life, and possibly God’s dominion over it.   We can relate.   The “Why’s?” and the “Why Me’s” can stack up in our minds and hearts, but like a parent exercising loving-authority over a child, God reminds Job and us--of His power, omniscience and of His ultimate authority over everything: Creation… and us today .   Then the  Lord  answered Job from the whirlwind: (2) “Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ig
Read more

Corona Devo 991

Running low on " good things " today?  Doesn't it (sometimes) seem like/trend like/read like/tweet like/water-cooler-chat or backyard-fence-visit like/intimidate like/depress like... there are no  good things in the land? . I know. It's no secret that many have abandoned  the Law of the  Lord,  and at times, that's us .   It is evident all around us that people have  followed each other  in this sin.  When we look around...or when we live our days...we can wonder: Are there  any  good things  left in the land? There are still some good things in the land ...and no matter how bleak we feel the "forecast" for today is...there will always  be  some good things in the land, because God is in the land.   T he Bible reminds us of that today.   ~~~ The Israelites (and their king, Rehoboam ) were God's people, but like all of us at times/seasons of our lives...they wandered from Lord and His ways.  They relaxed in their allegiance to the Lord, and then the
Read more