Have you ever thought about what it means to deny yourself, take up your cross and follow Jesus?

If I’m being honest, that doesn’t sound like a whole lot of fun.

I like to make everything fun. I can turn the hardest work into something fun. I can take any old boring day and make it memorable. Everything becomes an adventure when you’re riding with me. But this … this doesn’t sound fun at all. Jesus, are you saying to follow you we can’t have fun? Are you saying every day has to be miserable? Are you saying everything has to be hard and serious?

Here’s where we get this all wrong. This whole denying self and taking up our cross sounds miserable, but it’s not … it’s actually the best trade you will ever make. It’s giving up what you could create on your own to accept what only God can do with your life. Jesus said in John 10:10, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” Other translations describe this life Jesus is offering as “more and better than we have ever dreamed of” and “more than we expect – life in its fullness until you overflow.”

SIGN ME UP FOR THAT LIFE! That sounds amazing! I can get excited about that.

Now remember, to accept this life that Jesus is offering, I must make the trade. The trade is outlined in Matthew 16: 24, “If anyone wants to be my follower, they must deny themselves, take their cross, and follow me.”

Do you want this full, overflowing, better life only Jesus can give you? Okay, DENY YOURSELF AND TAKE UP YOUR CROSS. But what does that mean?

This is more than just a saying. We have to dig deeper to understand what Jesus means here.

To deny yourself means you refuse to follow yourself. You’re taking yourself out of the driver’s seat and letting Jesus lead. It’s “Jesus, take the wheel.” But girl, you know you constantly take it back! You pray, Jesus, have your way, then you bulldoze your own dang way. You get all fleshy with your feelings and your emotions start making decisions, and that wheel is all in your hands. Then when you’ve made your mess, you sweetly invite Jesus to take the wheel again.

That’s what we do … for real. If I were Jesus, I think I would eventually be like, “no, girl … this is your car now, you’re driving!” It’s a good thing I’m not Jesus!

Where are you following yourself? Where are your emotions running the show? Where have your plans become the focus? Jesus is saying, “Let’s trade. You give me your plans. You bring your emotions to me. You lay this all at my feet first. Then, I will give you a life that is better than you could have ever dreamed of.” But honey, if you’re not willing to make the trade, your life is suffering.

Deny yourself. Make your commitment to Jesus greater than your commitment to yourself. Genuinely choose his way over your way. This is what Jesus is asking for. Jesus is asking for our full surrender. Not out of fear, but out of faith. Jesus, I trust your plans for my life so much, that I give up my own. I’m no longer my own leader, you’re the leader. Your way will be followed. Your timing will be trusted. Your word will be my guide. I won’t be a brat about this.

I bet God’s Spirit within has been prompting you to release something lately, hasn’t it? But you’ve been holding on, haven’t you? Would you dare to name that which God is asking you to give up? What is it? Is it alcohol? Is it a relationship? Is it an addiction? Is it a bad habit? Is it control? Is it your need to be right, have the last word, have everyone like you, know for sure what’s happening next, security … What is it?

God revealing these things he wants you to change isn’t a sign that there’s something wrong with you. That’s a sign you’re growing in relationship with Jesus! This is a wonderful thing! This is you get closer and closer to making that deal with Jesus.

I no longer follow my moods and emotions. I am no longer led my impulses and fears. How? Because I’m no longer following myself. I’m denying myself. “Self” with all her feelings, impulses and reactions no longer has the wheel. The wheel has been given to Jesus. I’m now following him! I choose Jesus over myself, my flesh and my way. And this will need to be a daily choice. Some days I’ll mess this up, but I’m always welcomed back to following Jesus.

Now, when Jesus says “take up your cross” what does that mean? We have made the image of a cross into something it really wasn’t. It wasn’t religious. It wasn’t spiritual. And it certainly wasn’t inspirational. When Jesus walked this Earth, no one wore a cross around their neck. No one had cross tattoos.

To pick up your cross was a death sentence. Condemned criminals were forced to carry their own cross to their place of execution. What this showed was a life previously spent breaking the rules was now fully surrendered.

So, when Jesus says, “take up your cross”, it means submit and surrender to him. This is where your life changes. SURRENDER.

As you grow in relationship with Jesus, his Holy Spirit lives within you and it continually shows you what needs to be surrendered. It’s not a one and done, it’s a constant surrender. Oh how he goes to work on your heart. Oh how he reveals secret ties that have held you back. Oh how we calls for changed thoughts and changed habits.

I mistakenly thought there were likely just one or two big things that God wanted to work on in my heart and once I got that right, the work would be done. Wrong. I’m learning there are a million little things right behind those big things that God wants to help tweak in my heart. And every time he does, my life gets immeasurably better. Now, we’re in this relationship of, “Hey my girl, this needs to change.” Then the moment I surrender and let the change begin, I grow. I get better. And when I get better, my life gets better.

AND GET THIS … IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE MISERABLE!

Becoming more and more like the girl God created you to be and the girl Jesus died so you could be, is BEAUTIFUL! It’s exciting! It’s exhilarating.

Denying yourself and taking up your cross is surrendering to Jesus with a commitment to trust him. And when you do, in exchange, you get the full, overflowing, abundant, better than you could ever imagine, life only Jesus can offer.

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