Sacrifice of Self

Bedtime is sweet after a long, hard day - comfy clothes, soft pillow, feet-off-the-floor. Those first moments of lying horizontal are welcomed and ... yes, sweet. Hebrews 13:16 says, "Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have for such sacrifices are pleasing to God." Doing good never saved a soul - never will; but, our good works are a result of our acknowledging what Jesus has already done for us. "We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." One thing I've discovered is that the hindrance to my doing good is ... me. I'd much rather do good to-and-for myself, which conflicts with what the sacrifice God calls me to. In her book, The Quiet Place, Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth writes, "God asks us to offer up our lives and daily circumstances as a living sacrifice, signifying our wholehearted consecration and surrender to the One Who gave His life for us." This happens only when we are willing to set aside ourselves throughout the course of a day. Mister Bill and I have a habit of lying down mid-day; that brief time of feet-off-the-floor rejuvenates and inspires us for the hours yet to come. The sacrifice God calls for is that relinquishing of self and its agenda to "share" with others what God has given and done us. When we have put the sacrifice-of-self on the altar unto God, we become useful to Him. "By the mercies of God ... present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship." (Romans 12:1 ESV). Don't just lay yourself down at the end of the day - make a habit of laying-you-down over and over throughout the day. Practice ... sacrifice of self.