Sunday, March 16, 2008

Not My Will But Yours



I have been reading the Gospel Primer during my devotions. The Primer recently came out as a book with a few additions from the original copy. It is outstanding and food for my soul. I have been mediating on a section called "All Things Crucified-Part 1".

"The gospel is not simply the story of "Christ, and Him crucified"; it is also the story of my own crucifixion."

"Nevertheless, I must set my face like a flint toward the cross and embrace this crucifixion in everything I do. I should expect every day to encounter circumstantial evidence of God's commitment to my dying; and I must seize upon every God-given opportunity to be conformed more fully to Christ's death, no matter the pain involved."

"When my flesh yearns for some prohibited thing, I must die. When called to do something I don't want to do, I must die. When I wish to be selfish and serve no one, I musts die. When shattered by hardships that I despise, I must die. When wanting to cling to wrongs done against me, I must die. When enticed by allurements of the world, I must die. When wishing to keep besetting sins secret, I must die. When wants that are borderline needs are left unmet, I must die. When dreams that are good seem shoved aside, I must die. Not my will, but Yours be done..."


When does your flesh resist dying? I have tried to add my own "When... I must die" to help my embracing fully this part of the glorious gospel. When it's late and I'd rather be sleeping than be up late ministering to others (something that can happen when you work with singles- love you guys though :-) When I need to release Chris for something even though I'd rather have him home all to myself, I must die. Or as I touched on in my previous post, when my heart desires something our budget does not allow for, I must die. But as Vincent states in the next section, every death is a new beginning- a beautiful inheritance in Christ.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am loving this book as well. thank you for sharing examples of how you are seeking to apply it specifically to your life. It inspires me to do the same.

Tiffany said...

Tara, I am so thankful to have you as a good friend! Your vulnerability, your humility, reminds me that we are all sinners in this life together and we serve such an amazing God!