What's Missing?

I stink at math. For whatever reason, I have not been able to grasp the mathematical process. God’s gift-of-a-companion to me (my wife...in case you missed that) has filled that void in my life. I'm truly grateful that she watches over the 'numbers' in our world. But when it comes to my own personal path in life…..God is all about the numbers game there.

Scripture speaks plainly about the ‘adding to’ that Christ places in our lives. But doesn’t there always ‘appear’ to be a catch when it comes to receiving the deeper blessings in Him? I've worked out a simple way to receive Godly additions in my life - - I like to call it 'addition...by subtraction', even though those three words don't appear to go together.

Throughout history, any time ordinary men stepped forward to accomplish extraordinary things, there was always an ingredient used to get them to the place where their passions lay. That missing ingredient was sacrifice. ' God's ways are not man’s ways.' Sacrifice is all in God’s vocabulary, but many seem to not be able to find it in theirs.

Why does it prove so hard for people to sacrifice?

1. Sacrifice will cause others to mock you. 

TRUE sacrifice will make no sense from a human perspective. When you bring your personal sacrifice to God, expect others not to understand and some might even question your motives.

2. Sacrifice will cause many to abandon you. Jesus disciples stood with Him for three years...when He fed the 5,000...when He taught on the side of the mountain...when He healed Lazarus. But on the night before Jesus was crucified, they couldn’t even sacrifice sleep to pray.

 
Job and Abraham knew how it felt. Daniel knew. Maybe even right now - you know. Why God remains silent sometimes, I can’t answer. But I do know that He is bound by His word...“I will never leave you nor forsake you.” While others may not, Christ will be with you through it all.

(Sam's Shoes - Rocks State Park)

3. Sacrifice will cause others to eventually believe you. 

Abraham, take your only son Isaac and offer him as a sacrifice….
What speaks to me so much is the willingness of Abraham to follow what was asked of him. He was about to plunge the knife into his promised son when God called out and told him to stop.  Genesis 22:12, ‘Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld your son, your only son.’

We say it….but Abraham proved it. What came out of his mouth was a reality in his heart.
There's no one who should embody the word sacrifice any more than those who follow Christ. God help us that we who know Him would be willing to sacrifice enough to give Him away. 

(Farm Road - Forest Hill, MD)

Psalm 139:23-24 'Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.'