Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to follow in my footsteps, he must give up all right to himself, take up his cross and follow me. For the man who wants to save his life will lose it; but the man who loses his life for my sake will find it. For what good is it for a man to gain the whole world at the price of his own soul? What could a man offer to buy back his soul once he had lost it?

Matthew 16:24-26 (Phillips)

 

Jesus tells us that if we want to follow Him, we must forget about ourselves and our personal ambition. This does not mean we are to neglect ourselves but rather prioritise our love for God. When we seek God first and put our faith in His promises, He assures us that He knows our needs and hears our prayers and provides abundantly (Matthew 6:33).

Without a surrendered life we cannot receive well from God.

There is a tendency to hold back and not reach out in faith. Jesus warned us against putting self-preservation before our salvation. If all we do in life is maintain our personal comfort and ease while not following God, we are living a life in vain. When we die, we cannot take anything with us from this life. Thus, it is foolish to put our trust in worldly possessions, human achievements, or even physical beauty. All these things will fade away. But our hope in God lasts forever.

Your earthly life should not come before your eternal life.

When you learn to live with eternity in your heart, every day is a blessing from God, and a fresh start under His grace. There is no sorrow He cannot console, and no pain He cannot heal. This frees us to thank God in every circumstance because our gratitude is based on seeing His fingerprints all over everything.