And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” (Luke 9:23)
When Jesus spoke these words, his listeners knew what he was talking about — even before Calvary. They had seen condemned men paraded through the streets, carrying a crossbeam, trailed by jeering crowds, stumbling beyond the city gates to face their execution.
Jesus was talking about dying to self, and he said we must do this daily. We can’t coast through life on the strength of a single moment of surrender and a sinner’s prayer spoken years ago. Yes, that’s where the Christian life begins, but it’s only the beginning. Every day thereafter our quest is to put into practice that life-defining prayer.
C.S. Lewis said in a letter to a friend:
The very moment you wake up each morning, all your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists simply in shoving them back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in. And so on, all day.
He’s also talking about dying to self, saying that it must be done daily.
The pianist Ignacy Paderewski (among others) has been quoted as saying, “If I miss one day of practice, I notice it. If I miss two days, the critics notice it. If I miss three days, the audience notices it.”
In the same way, when the Christian life ceases to be a daily endeavor, it may not be evident to others, but you’ll notice it right away. And eventually it catches up with you.
Your best possible life is lived one day at a time — and the same rules apply for each and every day. There are no cheat days built in. We must take up our cross daily.
This means that every day our words must be: “Lord, not my will, but yours be done.”
© 2014, 2025. Today’s post was adapted from a message in Steve’s series Start Here. The C.S. Lewis quote was edited for punctuation.
