Lost and Found

Galations 2:20

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

This verse seems to have been the theme for my study of God over break thus far. Everything I read, I always turn back to this verse. Tonight, as I read God's Word, I was truly overcome with how obedient the Apostle Paul was to God. He completely gave his life over to Christ, denying himself family, comfort, and... himself. His family was the family of God, his comfort was in the hope given to us through Christ, and he himself was mostly gone, replaced by Christ. Paul suffered. He was deserted. Ding, ding, ding; realization: Christ was too! And.. as Christians, aren't we supposed to live by His example?

2 Timothy 2:11-13

If we die with him,
we will also live with him;
If we endure,
we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
he will also disown us;
If we are faithless,
he will remain faithful
for he cannot disown himself.

It is our choice. We can live with Christ, or we can reject him. But, he will be faithful, for he who promised is faithful (Heb. 10:23).

If we choose Christ, we must give up ourselves, our wishes, our comfort; we must succomb to the Spirit; we must release worldly values; we must accept the suffering we may feel now. We must be self-controlled, self-disciplined, self-less.

The truth is, choosing Christ makes us seem weak to the world. But, with the Holy Spirit, we are made more powerful than ever before. Through us, God can make a difference.

According to Romans 8:18, our present suffereing is worthless compared to the glory that will be revealed.

It's all up to you:
Will you crucify yourself in order to really live?