living and dying

“For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God.  I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.  The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Gal. 2:19-20)

During this season of Lent it is always good to remind ourselves that because of Jesus we are not called to die just for the sake of dying, but to die for the sake of living.  It is the death of the false, in order to live more and more fully in the truth.  It is the death of self, in order that Jesus might live more fully in and through us.  It is the death of the old and the tired and the broken and the worn out, in order to live anew in the beauty and vibrancy and fullness of the power of the Spirit.  Therefore, it is a death we should welcome and embrace, rather than avoid at all costs, because it is a death that brings life.

Lord Jesus, how are you asking me to die today, in order that you might live more fully in and through me?  Give me the strength and the courage and the grace to do just that.  Amen.