God works according to His own clock. We can’t fathom the work He is doing behind the scenes in our lives and in the lives of others. We worry, we’re stressed, and we anxiously want life to run on our terms. Like a train, we have our own timetables. I can wake up and in my mind, plan the day with the work I will accomplish. However, the day isn’t mine. I know my dream career and perhaps I'll do everything in my power to get there, but is that God's plan for me? I can have my plans ready to go in my mind, but hardly do they line up with God’s.

Being a christian doesn’t mean we are blessed with every desire of our heart. On the contrary in Luke Jesus says, “‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me’” (Luke 9:23). In this verse, Jesus demands two actions for us to take: deny ourselves and take up our cross daily. When he says deny ourselves, he means we should not think of ourselves as the sole master of our life. Anything in our mind or heart that will separate us from Jesus should be cast away. Thus, we are denying the human desires inside of us in order to follow the Lord’s commandments. Secondly, Jesus wants the believer to sacrifice their life in order to follow His will. These verses continue and Jesus says, “‘For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?’” (Luke 9:24-25). Jesus calls for His disciples to sacrifice their lives. We must be willing to give up every sense of comfort or normalcy. We must give up the former dreams of ours. We must forgo our former ungodly habits to live like Jesus.

You could lose your job if the boss finds out you’re a Christian. Maybe your friends will become more distant, you could lose them too. You could lose that boyfriend when he realizes you aren’t willing to give out what he wants. You could die. Think of the people around the world, beheaded, tortured, and persecuted for confessing Jesus is the Son of God. Look at how strong of a faith they have in the Lord and His promises. Jesus says, “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you’” (Matthew 5:10-2). Following Jesus means we will lose our life. You planned on going to law school, but right now your grades aren’t hitting the mark and it feels that everything you do is in vain. There's a chance God is telling you your plans aren't His plans. Did the man you thought loved you, just leave? Then he isn't the man God wants for your life. If you wake up in the morning after a crazy night with two pink lines on that little stick, don't think that isn't a gift from God. Maybe God has a different plan for your life.After all, it’s God who blessed you with life to begin with. And as followers of Jesus, we must deny ourselves and daily sacrifice our lives to do His will.

I don’t understand the inner workings of heaven. I don't know how those clocks tick. I don't have a secret copy of heaven's timetable. I wish God would tell me the plans He has for my life. Instead I'm told to, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6). Our humanly understanding compares to God’s like the size of the earth compares to the sun. But God says to trust in Him. So trust in Him. God created the heavens and the earth, how insignificant are my problems compared to His glory.

Deny yourself and take up your cross. I'd rather be separated from the world, than be separated from God. We could lose our lives, yet how much more will we gain in Jesus?