Giving Up “Everything”

Note: On Tuesdays and some Sundays, you can find me at Your Daily Tripod, owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.

You know how your favorite scripture reading can change from time to time, depending on where you are on your spiritual journey and what joys and challenges life is tossing at you? Well, right now, at this particular juncture, it’s Matthew 19:27 I tripod_jesusandtherichyoungman_wikimedia_publicdomain081216find myself turning to again and again:

Then Peter said to him in reply: “We have given up everything and followed you. What will there be for us?”

 Everything indeed, it must have seemed to them then: time with their families. Time spent on fishing, tax collecting, and the other activities that had consumed them. Independence and security and perhaps a bit of ego. Logical, then, to ask what they were going to get in return, since Jesus had just said those with riches would have to give them away to follow him.

Do you ever feel like you too have given up everything to follow Him? I do—time, talent, and treasure. I’m not complaining, just stating what it looks like to me. And when His next desire for me manifests itself, I find myself asking like Peter, “Really? You want more? How can I do more? You already have everything. When do I get something back?”

Then sanity and faith prevail… and I pick up that cross, sometimes daily or even hourly, and give up more… time with silly computer games. A tendency to talk first and think second. Doughnuts in the morning.

And my prayer becomes, “Jesus, I trust in You… regardless of any tangible result there may be here on earth.”

By Melanie

Melanie Rigney is the author of Radical Saints: 21 Women for the 21st Century and other Catholic books. She is a contributor to Living Faith and other Catholic blogs. She lives in Arlington, Virginia. Melanie also owns Editor for You, a publishing consultancy that since 2003 has helped hundreds of writers, publishers, and agents.

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