What are you willing to give up to get closer to Jesus?

  First, who are we getting closer to?  We are getting closer to Jesus, Son of God.  And since He is One of the Three Persons in the Trinity, we get the other Two as well.  The God that is Love [1 John 4:8], an infinite, all-powerful love.  But that is not all, though it would definitely be enough.  We get everyone in right relationship with Jesus.  This includes past loved ones, the canonized saints we know of, and all of the saints in Heaven we know nothing of.

   So, what must we lose if we get closer to Jesus?  Sin, unforgiveness, anger and generally stuff we would rather do without.  Along with the stuff we must lose, there is some stuff that we lose because of our closeness.  We lose our despair.  Jesus is our Hope.  We lose hate.  Jesus is Love.  We lose our emptiness.  We are filled with God.  We lose loneliness.  We have God and all those in right relationship with Him.

   Are you willing to give up these to get closer to Jesus?  In some cases, we have to give up other normally neutral activities or goods.  Having money is not bad, but not giving it to others in need when we have capacity is bad.  Having time is likewise not bad, but we can use too much of it lazily to keep us from getting closer to Jesus.  We get stuck in keeping our time, talents, and treasure to ourselves without being willing to use them to get closer to Jesus.

   When you are closer to your neighbor, you are closer to Jesus.  When we give to our neighbor, we are, without a doubt closer, closer to our neighbor.  Of course, that does not mean we should abandon giving to God more directly, especially in prayer.  Would you be willing to give up this hour of TV to get closer to the God that loved you into existence and cannot help but love you?  What about that newest gadget you are contemplating?

   Do not worry.  You will get more from God than you give up.  After all, He is God.

   Jesus, You gave up everything for love of me, help me to see the obstacles in my way of getting closer to You and the strength to get them out of our way.