What comes to mind when you read …
“My command is this: Love each other as I have loved
you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s
friends” (John 15:12-13 NIV).
With Easter approaching, maybe you think of Jesus
dying on the cross so we might live with him and our heavenly Father for all
eternity.
Maybe you think of heroes—soldiers who have fallen
in battle or those who have risked their lives while protecting school children
during a shooter’s rampage.
Surely they’ve given the ultimate sacrifice …
But perhaps laying down our lives doesn’t
necessarily mean being willing to take a bullet for someone. I believe it also
encompasses putting someone else’s needs, wants, and desires ahead of our own.
Being unselfish in acts that honor and serve others while not becoming a slave
or losing ourselves in unhealthy ways.
I always have a number of things I want to
accomplish each day. So for me, laying down my life sometimes means putting my
“to-do” list aside when my husband needs time with me, a daughter calls and
wants to talk, a friend invites me to meet for lunch, or someone needs my help
or a shoulder to cry on. Tasks get put off for another time—sometimes even days later.
What does “laying down your life” mean for you?
Dawn
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