Author: Lynn Green

Photo by Fares Hamouche on Unsplash

**This is a personal website and reflects my thoughts and convictions. It does not represent any official position held by Youth With A Mission.**

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to have a quiet retreat in a very special place:  The Western Desert of Egypt.  You might have heard some places described as a “thin place”.  It might be a particular church or property or even a region.  There is no doubt that the Western Desert is a thin place.

That is, it is a place where the “veil” that separates us from the spiritual realm is very thin.  Another way to say it is that the Western Desert is a great place to seek God’s presence because He seems to be particularly near.

That is because women and men have sought God in this region, sometimes in isolation and often in monasteries, for centuries.  They have lived lives totally dedicated to God and many have been martyred over the centuries as a result of the ebb and flow of anti-Christian sentiment.

During my short retreat, I wrote three brief devotionals which will be posted over the next few days.

DAY THREE

The motivation of self (we might also call it ego) is to seek glory and honour.  Jesus made it very clear that if we succeed in our hunt for glory, then we have had our reward and none awaits us in eternity.  It is quite possible to live an apparently godly life with many good works, fasting, prayer and much sacrifice—all to no lasting benefit.

Mat 6:1  “Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

Mat 6:2  “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.

Mat 6:5  “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.”

It is essential that we realize that our egos are in direct competition with the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  He wants us to live a life that brings honor and glory to Jesus Christ.  But our egos demand and are offended if we don’t get glory.  When we do get honor and praise for our righteous acts, then the spiritual and eternal reward to which we should have been entitled is squandered; spiritual growth comes to a halt and our good works can easily become worthless religion.

“Lord, I get so easily offended when my acts of service are not recognized by others.   I confess that this is the voice of the easily offended ego and that my ego works against your purposes in my life.  Help me today to deny my selfish interests, take up my cross and follow you.”

Lynn Green.

Photo by Denis Oliveira on Unsplash

**This is a personal website and reflects my thoughts and convictions. It does not represent any official position held by Youth With A Mission.**

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to have a quiet retreat in a very special place:  The Western Desert of Egypt.  You might have heard some places described as a “thin place”.  It might be a particular church or property or even a region.  There is no doubt that the Western Desert is a thin place.

That is, it is a place where the “veil” that separates us from the spiritual realm is very thin.  Another way to say it is that the Western Desert is a great place to seek God’s presence because He seems to be particularly near.

That is because women and men have sought God in this region, sometimes in isolation and often in monasteries, for centuries.  They have lived lives totally dedicated to God and many have been martyred over the centuries as a result of the ebb and flow of anti-Christian sentiment.

During my short retreat, I wrote three brief devotionals which will be posted over the next few days.

DAY TWO

Jesus said, “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself…”
(Mark 8:34).

Self-denial is the cornerstone of spiritual growth. Jesus emphasized it again and again:

Luke 9:24: For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.

Mat 18:9: If your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away.

Luke 14:26,27: If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters–yes, even his own life–he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

There is no doubt that our brothers and sisters who live lives of deprivation and persecution have an “advantage”. Each and every day presents them with the contrast of following Jesus or choosing a life of greater ease and freedom from threat. The choice before them is often stark and obvious. As a result, they cannot and do not escape Jesus’ demand that they should deny themselves daily, take up their cross and follow Him.

We, who were born into more comfortable circumstances, where our faith does not make us vulnerable to persecution, battle with a mortal enemy who attacks us with stealth and subtlety. The Apostle Paul refers to this enemy as the ‘old self’. “For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—“ (Romans 6:6)

The power and subtlety of our self is such that we can succumb to its demands again and again, choking our new life in Christ—unless the Holy Spirit comes to our aid, exposing self and enabling us to put it to death. Pray for the Spirit of Jesus to shine His light into your life, revealing the old self where ever it is at work.

Lynn Green.