DAY 25 – THE SECRETS OF SELF DENIAL
Some people are of the belief that what Jesus is saying in Matthew is that since he have to go through a whole lot for us to be saved,he also wants us to suffer. This is totally incorrect,it is simply a glorious invitation to be intimate with Him.
Jesus is saying that He has the key if you really want to be close to Him. All you need to do is to “deny yourself, take up your cross and follow Him”. We often avoid this because think because we think it’s too much to do. You haven’t taken your time to discover that it’s a blessing in disguise as the Lord is inviting you to a place of highest intimacy with Him.
Denying ourselves is just too cheap to pay for the incredible delights of loving community with out God.
Self-denial is the deliberate curtailing of healthy passions and desires for the sake of pursuing Jesus harder. Self denial brings back to life the flow of live and love in the secret place.
To clarify, here’s just a sampling of the many ways self-denial can be invoked:
• Fasting from or curtailing intake of food or drink;
• Cutting back on sleep time;
• Bypassing good entertainment;
• Saying no to social invitations/fellowship;
• Lessening time given to recreation/exercise;
• Taking a temporary hiatus from marital relations;
• Accepting a vow of celibacy;
• Spending less when you could afford more;
• Etc.
None of the above activities are sinful. Practiced in moderaytion and balance, they are gifts of God that we might enjoy a fulfilling and satisfying life
There are some spiritual advantage which comes along with self denial;
The first one is that your perspective becomes clearer. The more you deny yourself,the more the veil is being taken off and the more you see things better. You’ll start to see the world for what it’s.Self denial explains that we do not love the world,not even the things in it..
Another advantage is that we experience accelerated change.When you begin to see how worldliness has infected your lifestyle, grace is released for embracing personal change. The simple truth is that the Lord Jesus honors self-denial. He loves the passionate resolve and humility of those who willingly embrace self-denial, so He rewards it with grace to gain personal purity and true holiness. He gives grace to the humble.
Others include,preparation for prophetic ministry and Ability to hear God; anwers, guidance, direction, insight—all seem to flow more freely when self-denial is freely and willingly embraced with grace in the heart.
Self-denial is practiced in secret. It is done quietly and exclusively for God, to be seen by His eyes alone. When practiced in purity before our loving Father, self-denial serves to awaken the flow of life in the secret place. Want in on a secret? When your secret place needs revitalization, embrace the grace of self-denial. Your heart will be touched more readily, your spirit will soar higher, and your awareness of His presence will increase.
