Palm Sunday Followup

Hello again!

I was thinking again about Jesus going up the Mount of Olives. 

So the question is:  What did you change in your life between Ash Wednesday and Palm Sunday? What new thing did you commit to do? 

Did you fast from food so that you could read your Bible? Did you add family devotions? Did you cut out TV time so that you could read more of a devotion book? How about covenanting to memorize Scripture each week? 

Another way to put this is, what discipline did you do so that you were more disciplined in your time with God?

When we give up our time to make time for God in this busy world and culture, we set aside ourselves for God's use. We consecrate ourselves to Him. We say to God that He is more important that the schedule of our lives or in fact, the preference of our mind and/or heart. 

God becomes more important. We become less important.

As Jesus went over the top of the Mount of Olives, that is what he was saying. Jesus was saying that the road ahead of him was more important than what He COULD do. He could have stopped on the top of the Mount and glory could have filled the air as multitudes of angels filled the skies and heavens. 

That isn't what happened. 

He did the hard thing. He disciplined himself. He gave it all up. Himself. Completely. 

Wow. 

So when we come down from this time of setting ourselves in the backseat,  I realize you were only asked to do this for 40 (+6) days, the challenge is not to come down from the mountain and jump back into being the same person you were before the challenge. The challenge is to come down from the mountain and CHANGE who you are. Let the change, change you. Let the change become the NEW you. Jesus makes all things new because Jesus changes things. (I think I've heard that before!!)

So when you sat in the pew this past Sunday and you heard me talk about going UP the Mount and then going through the valley (Kidron) and then into Jerusalem, I was talking about the challenge that we made to God and how the ultimate end of that challenge is to let it change you. Jesus changes things. He sacrificed himself. We sacrifice ourselves for Him. 

Pretty amazing stuff! 

It is our choice what to do with the discipline we added to our lives. It is our choice whether to enjoy the mountain and then to do nothing with it, or to enjoy the mountain and then come down, sacrifice ourselves (just as Jesus did) and, ultimately, to choose to die daily for Him. 

And that is a mighty choice.