Music Ministry

Give ‘til it . . . hurts??

Before I go any further, no, I am not talking about money! All throughout Christ's ministry on earth, He made a point of preaching, teaching, and living the concept of self-sacrifice. In our modern society that concept has seemed to escape so many. Perhaps it is the idea of personal responsibility like "God helps those who help themselves". Or the sensible approach of "if I give so much people take advantage of me". Whatever the reason, it is clear that the human concept of give and take has been an issue from the beginning and still exists today in our own community of faith.

There are a few things to bring to light during this season of Lent that can help us to examine our own concepts of sacrifice and move in line with God's concept of sacrifice. First, self-sacrifice never expects to be repaid! This is fairly simple idea when we decide to sacrifice our lives for Christ, who we already own so much to, but what about the stranger or the loved one who seems to do nothing but take? We are still called to give of ourselves in whatever way we can to even our enemies, who not only may give nothing back but who might just turn around and hurt us. Christ did just this on the cross. He gave everything even when those he was sacrificing for were nailing him up to die. We are called to do the same. Tough words for sure, but true.

Second, self-sacrifice fills others. When we give of ourselves we meet the needs of other people. If you think about it all the way through, when we are all giving of ourselves.....we all stay filled! That is how the Church operates at its finest. The last thing is perhaps the hardest one to face. Who has the responsibility to decide what the sacrifice looks like? Is it the giver or the receiver? Many times we expect others to just accept what we give and be happy with it. What we must realize is that in order to meet peoples needs, we must know what the need is. We must know what part of us needs to be given in order to be effective! If I decided to sit down next to a man on the street who has not had a meal in days and ask him if he wants to talk about his family life, I doubt we would get very far would we?

It works in all the same ways with everyone. What are we sacrificing to impact the world? Our time? Our talents? Our music? Our expectations? Our fears? Our dreams? Only you can answer for yourself because only you can make the choice to sacrifice.

Always remember that it is God who gives us the strength and it is God who, in the end, is the Great and Gracious Rewarder!

In Christ,
Jacob
jwinslett@fayettepcusa.org
Home: 678/817-7380
Cell: 770/733-3713