Sacrifices that cost me nothing....

"Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friend."

These are the words Jesus spoke to His disciples while He was on earth, and I'm not sure those following Him knew that He meant it literally. The One they had come to love, whose miracles they had witnessed, whose teaching they had soaked up, whose advice they had heeded...was about to be beaten, spit upon, hurled insults at, and crucified. For their sin. Because He loved them.

What an amazing kind of love this is! And Jesus demonstrated it so perfectly, didn't He? But guess what––He also said: "This is my command: love one another as I have loved you" (John 15). You and I are called to that same standard of self-giving.

I don't know about you, but I find it easier to give of something that is mine than to give of myself. It's no problem to donate my money to a charity or lend something to a friend, answer questions or give advice. It's also fun to give of my talents and use my gifts, especially when I know people are blessed by them. (That's also where pride can easily sneak in and I am tempted to do stuff in order to be seen.) The hard part comes though when I need to give of myself...my time, my physical presence, my love, patience, mercy.

And that's exactly what God's been requiring of me lately! I'm learning though that it's not just a seasonal or short-term thing. This lesson in serving is a permanent one. Our whole posture in life as Christ's disciples should be one of self-giving. Jesus said He came not to be served, to but to serve. As a good family friend of ours says, "If your ministry 'toolbox' doesn’t include a basin and a towel, then you may want to file a complaint, for surely you have been sold a defective product" (Tom Zurowski).

There are times when I wish discipleship was easier, and I could just "do what I want." Sometimes people's needs seem like inconveniences or interruptions to my own schedule. But how selfish! Jesus never thought like that.

So I'm learning to serve, and along the way our faithful God offers encouragement. For example, yesterday as I was taking care of my mother-in-law we were sitting out in the garden, and she randomly turned to me and said, "Thank you for always being here with me. I mean, I can't take care of myself, so what would I do otherwise? I would just be alone." Though her memory and thought patterns were extremely affected by her stroke, that was such a clear moment and a precious reminder that my service is worth it.

I am reminded of David's words in 2 Samuel 24 when he planned to worship the Lord, and someone offered to give him the animals and wood for the sacrifice. David replied to him, "²⁴No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.”

We should have the same attitude. How often do we say we're "living for the Lord" or serving Him or following Christ or doing ministry or loving others...but it's costing us nothing? What kind of worshipful offering is that? I'm not saying that we need to bring trouble upon ourselves or live poorly or do nothing that we enjoy. Just that worship entails an offering, which means sacrifice.

I've been encouraged lately by these verses from Hebrews 13, and hope you are too:

"¹⁵ Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name. ¹⁶ And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased."

Did you catch that? Doing good to others is an act of worship to God. It's not about us, or whether we feel like it or not. The two greatest commandments are to love God and to love our neighbor, and I believe one of the biggest ways we can love God is through loving our neighbor. And somehow, we are always blessed in return. There are people all around us who need our time, our prayers, our listening ear, our practical help, our encouragement. Let us as disciples of Jesus be known as people who lay down our lives for others.

Who can you serve today?