Sacrifice ... Such a Scary Word!

Confession. God has been calling me to do something. Calling. Moving. Prompting. And I’m excited about what He wants me to do. Seriously excited! What a blessing to know God wants you to do something for Him and to see the path He set before you!

But … in order to follow that path, I have to pay a price. I have to walk away from something else that has meant so much to me.

I struggled with this for several weeks. Is it really necessary? Does that really impact my ability to do this work? Can’t I do both? Please, God? And His answer came as clear as ever, “I never accomplish great things without sacrifice.”

And I answered, “Yes, Lord.”

Oh, that scary word! Sacrifice. Do you know that “sacrifice” is mentioned in the Bible around 300 times? A word central to God’s story of love and redemption. Sacrifice.

Dictionary.com defines sacrifice as, “the surrender of something prized or desirable for the sake of something considered as having a higher or more pressing claim.” Sounds easy enough. Give up something for something better.

Some sacrifices are easy, or at least don’t require much thought. Sacrificing sleep to care for a child. Sacrificing time to help a friend. Sacrificing eating out to save money.

But what about when it is NOT easy? What about when God starts calling, moving, prompting? God asked Noah to build a boat that would take over 100 years to build. God asked Abram to walk away from his home, his comfort, and later He asked him to sacrifice his son Isaac. God asked Moses to confront a powerful Pharaoh. The Bible is full of stories of sacrifice, all leading to the ultimate moment when God offered His Son as the Sacrificial Lamb to pay the price for our sins and provide redemption for all who will believe and accept. God doesn’t accomplish GREAT things without SACRIFICE.

Consider this. “Sacrifice” comes from the Latin word sacrificium, meaning “to make holy.” That is my desire, to grow in Christ, to follow and obey, and to be set apart as a precious child of God.

Holy Father, please show me the things that I need to sacrifice. Help me make the sacrifice. Make my sole desire to obey Your call. In Jesus’ Precious Name. Amen.

Hebrews 13:16
Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God. (ESV)