LIVING IN REALITY

“He who will not take up his cross and come after Me is not worthy of Me.” –Matthew 10:38

Jesus is a real Person. He came from heaven to earth, and lived among human beings (Jn 1:14). During the three years of His public ministry, Jesus often had no place to lay His head and no home in which to sleep (Lk 9:58). He suffered rejection and intense persecution. He suffered physically and emotionally (Lk 19:41; Jn 19:33-35). Finally, He was unjustly condemned to death. For our salvation, He carried a real cross, was nailed upon it, and died for our sins.

Jesus cuts through the confusion and falsehoods in our culture by calling us to follow Him and carry our own daily crosses (Lk 9:23). If we actually do this, we will be so preoccupied with the demands of carrying this cross, following in His footsteps, and dying to ourselves that confusion will likely be replaced by clarity. To do this, we must “fix [our] eyes on Jesus” (Heb 3:1) to such an extent that we won’t have time or energy for much else. But Jesus will then count us worthy of Himself (Mt 10:38).

Tell Jesus: You “must increase, while I must decrease” (Jn 3:30).

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, fill me with such a love for You that I will consider You my greatest Treasure (Mt 13:44) and give all I have to possess You.
PROMISE: “Our help is in the name of the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.” –Ps 124:8
PRAISE: An invalid for many years, Teresa ministers to her caregivers by her kind words.