What comes to your mind when you think of making a sacrifice?
Ancient Israel would likely have mentioned the goats and lambs that they were required to offer for the forgiveness of their sins. Abraham would definitely have thought about the time God asked him to sacrifice his son, Isaac (see Genesis 22:2), and I’m pretty sure that Noah would have listed giving the years of his life, along with leaving behind everything he knew and loved, to build the ark and then enter it (see Genesis 6-8).
Although God no longer requires blood sacrifices, He still asks us to make sacrifices. Jesus said, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me.” (Luke 9:23 NLT), and Paul tells us, “Let [your bodies] be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.” (Romans 12:1 NLT)
Whether a blood sacrifice or a sacrifice of your family, time, talents, or money, none of these sound fun. Who can blame us if we drag our feet, need that gentle “nudge” from God, if we refuse altogether?
My youngest son made a tremendous sacrifice for me in March of 2025. I was moving from eastern to western Canada, and he offered to make the 4-day, 4,000 km (2,500 mile) drive with me.
Now, my son tends to think that a 6 hour drive is too long, and in order to make this trip, he had to give up an entire week of his precious vacation time, he had to leave his family behind, and he wouldn’t even let me pay for his airfare to eastern Canada. In addition, since all of this trip was made either in the northern US or in Canada where there was still snow on the ground, there were valid concerns that the roads wouldn’t be in the best shape. So yes, it was a big sacrifice for him!
Even with all of its pain, however, God blesses those who are faithful in their sacrifice…
Take Noah, for example. After the flood, God said, “Yes, I am confirming my covenant with you… I have placed my rainbow in the clouds. It is the sign of my covenant with you and with all the earth.” (Genesis 9:20-21 NLT)
And then there was Abraham. When he didn’t withhold his son from God, God said, “Because you have obeyed me… I swear by my own name… I will certainly bless you. I will multiply your descendants beyond number…” (Genesis 22:16-17 NLT).
Even Jesus promised blessing for sacrifice: “…I assure you that everyone who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or property, for my sake and for the Good News, will receive now in return a hundred times… and in the world to come that person will have eternal life.” (Mark 10:29–30 NLT)
And what about my son? Did he receive a blessing from his sacrifice?
When I recently asked him if he had seen our trip as a “sacrifice”, his immediate answer was, “Not at all! It was a lot of fun!” When he thought back, however, to how he had anticipated the trip would go, he had to admit that it had been, indeed, a huge sacrifice to offer to make the drive with me…
What was it that turned his “sacrifice” into a “blessing”?
His list was long, but the highlights were that it was fun to make the trip in my Tesla (a gift from my departed mom); he had fun “catching up” with me; he enjoyed our little stopover at his favorite football stadium; he enjoyed doing some shopping for his wife in the United States; and he even enjoyed spending the time with my dog, etc!
This is exactly what happens when we make sacrifices. The more we sacrifice, the more blessed we are!
The next time you are fighting against something God has asked you to sacrifice—pray for a stranger in the street, give up a paying job to go into full-time ministry, give your new coat to a cold stranger—Whatever it is, you can believe that God will reward you for what you have done—and in the end, just like my son, you will be glad you made the sacrifice!
In His love,
Lyn
Lynona Gordon Chaffart
Author, Moderator, Acting Director, Answers2Prayer Ministries
