Crucified with Christ

In Galatians 2:20 (NLT), we are reminded:

“My old self has been crucified with Christ.  It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.  So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” 

And 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NLT) reminds us:

This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!

This week, while you are getting your hair and nails done and picking out your beautiful outfit for an amazing Resurrection Sunday service, I want you to take a moment for self-reflection and ask yourself this question:

What needs to be crucified in my life so that I can really walk, live, and breathe in the newness that Jesus Christ promised to me?  What do I need to voluntarily release from my life and leave it in the grave?

Maybe it’s fear or constant worrying from the uncertainty that is presented each day when you turn on the news.  Or maybe it’s anger or unforgiveness toward someone who has mistreated you.  Has the misuse or abuse caused you to put up walls and be instantly distrustful of anyone who enters your life?  Or just maybe, after years of sacrificing your own needs, you have decided that you are justified in only looking out for your needs, disregarding any and everyone else.  Or maybe you have found yourself carrying the weight of trauma for so long out of habit that is just feels normal.  (Let’s see; that’s fear, worry, anger, unforgiveness, distance, distrust, selfishness, and trauma.)