Take Up Your Cross and Follow JesusSample

To Carry our Cross Daily 

Jesus is calling us to carry our cross daily. 

Each of us has a cross to bear in life. The cross for us is the purpose that God has for us, which is to reconcile a particular group of people back to Himself. This group of people could be in our work places, in our homes, amongst our relatives, people with a particular need, people in our neighborhoods, villages, towns, cities, states, nations, and even beyond. 

God brought us into the world for a purpose that He has assigned to us. Each of us is unique (Psalm 139:13-17). Our uniqueness is a particular equipping to effectively reach and reconcile a specific group of people back to God. The Apostle Paul was assigned and uniquely equipped by God to reach and reconcile the Gentiles (Acts 26:14-19, Romans 15:16). 

Paul therefore stands confidently, at the end of his life and declares, "Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision.” What will our response be at the end of our lives? Will we be able to say, “I have carried the cross that God assigned for me?” 

If we are ready to carry our cross, which is a mandate to be a follower of Jesus, then we must stop making choices in life based on salary, comforts, and so on. We must make life choices based on our cross, our God-given purpose. (Matthew 4:4, 6:31-33). 

Thought to ponder

When we make life choices based on bread, - our desires, rather than on God’s will and purpose for us, we are actually declaring, “I am not a follower of Jesus Christ.”