Run with Patience the Race Set Before You By Sharon Killion E-mail, sparrow557@aol.com Website, cherubimnetwork.com/brokenbread
	Matthew 16:24 (Amp) Then Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to be My disciple, let him deny himself (disregard, lose sight of, and forget himself and his own interests) and take up his cross and follow Me (cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My example in living and, if need be, in dying, also). This first point is what I'm going after today…..deny yourself. This is a hard saying. It's always so much easier for me to blame the other guy for my problems, or blame the devil, when in reality I'm the one that needs the change. Jesus cuts to the chase. He goes for the jugular…so to speak. He wants to deal with ME! I love the amplified bible. It defines this denying of self as disregarding myself, losing sight of myself, and forgetting myself and my own interests. Most of us just don't want to go there. We just don't think it "takes all that" to follow Jesus. But…Jesus said it, so let's look at it. In "Direction of Souls to Spiritual Life," St. Alphonsus speaks of practicing internal mortifications as part of this process. He gives us practical examples to follow: "not to respond to offenses, not to complain, not to reveal to others what redounds to one's personal credit, to yield to arguments, to give in to other's wishes provided there is no spiritual damage involved….." He further advises those seeking to grow up in God to practice other acts of mortification such as "not looking or listening out of curiosity, restraining oneself in talking, being satisfied with the least appetizing or badly prepared type of food, not to approach heat in winter, choosing for oneself the least desirable of things, to be happy and rejoice when one lacks something, not complaining if the weather is inclement, having a low opinion of oneself, and accepting persecutions. Ahh, yes, denying self! It's the little foxes that spoil the vine! I'm reminded of the words of Paul in Phil 4:11b-13 "for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength." NIV Another one to meditate is 1Tim 6:6 "But godliness with contentment is great gain." Fenelon speaks of this process in "The Seeking Heart" pg 146-47. "You really don't understand how far man has fallen if you expect any good from him. Stand in awe that the new stem of Jesus Christ bears good fruit within you. Discount all human acts of virtue - they are poisoned with smugness and self- confidence. There is idolatry that is worse than outrageous outward sins. Let God humble you. There are all sorts of hindrances to those who seek God. You can't go as fast as you want because your faults stop you. Your pride and all the baggage that it carries, slows you down. Sometimes you think you're moving right along, but you cheat here and there to keep up appearances. At worst you think you really have abandoned everything when your selfishness is very much intact. That is probably the worst thing of all. And then you start to turn and judge others. You start to mistrust people you are secretly jealous of. Jealousy, hidden in your deepest inner folds, exaggerates the least faults of others. Then come the disguised criticisms. You deceive yourself in order to justify yourself. God may disturb you out of your selfishness for a while, but slowly you drift back toward your own interests. This is what horrifies me. I beg God to deal a complete death to this selfish nature of mine or I will live a life full of selfish misery. I may look more spiritual than most people, but inside God sees the hypocrisy. It must make God sick, but when will it make me sick enough to submit entirely to God? When you start talking about Christianity in this light, when you speak of total abandon, people accuse you of being fanatical and unbalanced. This is because they don't want to completely die to their own desires. Your self interest hides in a million disguises. There is no end to the excuses we will come up with. This struggle is in all of us, even those whose hearts are toward God, because our will is still weak. Even our outrage at the faults of others is a great fault. Don't you see your own wretchedness? It would certainly level your self-righteousness to the ground. All mankind, including you, is corrupt, but don't be discouraged. God is preparing His true servants. They have faults, but God is at work in them." This sounds like more than is possible, Heh? No! His grace is sufficient! He gives grace to the humble…those who come to Him in prayer asking for help and are intent on obeying Him. James 4:6 (Amp) defines grace as the power of the Holy Spirit to meet this evil tendency and all others fully. This same verse goes on to say, "God sets Himself against the proud and haughty, and gives grace (continually) to the lowly (those who are humble enough to receive it). My prayer is that He will send us grace, an abundance of grace that we might truly begin to deny ourselves…yes, He must increase and we must decrease. He can only fully fill an empty vessel. Lord, help me have this mind in me that was in Christ Jesus…Who emptied Himself…selah Wholly devoted to the Lamb of God…sharon