Pick up your cross and follow me

34 "If any of you wants to be my follower," he told them, "you must put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross, and follow me. 35 If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will find true life. 36 And how do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul in the process? 37 Is anything worth more than your soul? 38 If a person is ashamed of me and my message in these adulterous and sinful days, I, the Son of Man, will be ashamed of that person when I return in the glory of my Father with the holy angels."
— Mark 8:34-38 (NLT)


There is no peace or joy when you are out of the will of God. Life sinks when you know and choose not to do His will. This morning I woke up in a bad mood and the last thing I wanted to do was to go to work. I wanted to say home and feed on the word that much needed. People at work knew that something was up with the way I was acting this morning. I didn't want to smile, I didn't want to talk to any body and I didn't want to hear the complaining. I wasn't rude, I just was in a zone. They all asked if I was tired and I said yes, which I really was, but deep down I knew the real reason why I didn't peace or joy. At about 2, work was crazy and there was so much going on that I didn't have time to think about it and wallow in my pettiness. After the craziness slowed down, I was in a much better mood and work was good after that.

I definitely understand Mark 8:35. When I choose to do my own will, I don't enjoy my life to the fullest and I have no peace and I lose many of the blessings He had in store for me. When I choose to do His will and deny myself, it's hard but life feels amazing and I have supernatural peace and joy. Being a fully devoted follower of Christ is costly but the benefits definitely outweight the costs.

For Jesus' true followers, the Cross is not a piece of jewelry or even a symbol, it is a lifestyle. It is the willingness to follow Jesus in every way, including the way of the Cross. I must surrender my selfishness and lay down my life for the needs of others. I must have unflinching loyalty to God no matter the cost. More than just a burden to bear, "our cross to bear" is a total "buy-in" to the life, character, and way of Jesus.