Some may say, since I'm in my 20s, that I need to be living life to the fullest, trying everything, doing everything and not worrying about the consequences. I would disagree. This past June, I went on a mission trip that flipped my worldview upside down. I realized that I had been living and living and living in my own world, but not one time had I committed to dying.
Until a pastor got raw and real with me and hundreds of other missionaries, I wasn't aware that my life was so important to me. The hashtag for the mission trip, that was also printed on the bracelets given to us, was #signeduptodie. When I first noticed it, I instantly bristled. I was anxious because I imagined myself dying in the streets of St. Louis, on my college campus or even in my sleep. I imagined fear and pain. I was walking around with this hashtag constantly attached to me, but it was more than just a hashtag. It was a commitment and a command. This way of thinking hanging on my wrist was defining me, but did I truly stand behind it? What would you answer if you had been in my shoes?
If I told you, as followers of Christ, we are all called, and even commanded, to be signed up to die, would you reconsider your faith? Would you reconsider if you knew that a confession of your faith would result in fatality? A few years ago, I'm not sure how I would have answered those questions, but today I know for sure that I would answer "no." I will gladly die.
That sounds scary in your head, though, right? Try saying it out loud. It's chilling, to say the least, but isn't that what Jesus did? He gladly died. And, since what 1 John 2:6, 1 Corinthians 11:1 and 1 Peter 2:21 says is true, we are called to gladly die, too. And what a blessing it would be. But why is it that when we are called to mirror any other trait of Christ, we're up to the challenge, as long as it isn't the selfless sacrifice trait? I asked myself this question almost every night we stayed in the church in St. Louis. And it wasn't until I realized that my life is not my own that I learned how sinful I was being. I was trying to own myself. I was trying to be myself without acknowledging that I wouldn't be who I am without Christ. The only way to be up to the challenge of dying is understanding that you don't own yourself because Jesus already claimed you years ago.
I signed up to die at a conference, but the real reason why I chose to lose my life is because I want to find Jesus. I want to be so immersed in Him and His word that my life is last on my list of important things. Jesus explains this in Matthew 16: 25, "For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it."
To live is Christ and to die is gaining a lifetime worshiping Him. Our time on Earth is so minuscule compared to the time we'll spend with Jesus after death. Trip Lee says it best: "Death is just a doorway to take me to my faithful lover." If we truly treated death like it was just a doorway to Jesus, it would be so much easier to live completely for Him. Death only brings fear when we let it surpass the love of Christ in our lives. If we're using our time on earth to save our lives, we will never truly find Jesus, but if we spend it giving the life He gave us to serve Him, for His glory, we will find our eternal life in His everlasting love. Because of that truth and because His promise is larger than life, I signed up to die, and I hope you will do the same.
