I love when you come to Me and ask what I want and what My will is. So many come into My Kingdom thinking that their life will be easier. The truth is, when you embrace salvation, you are embracing the Cross. The Cross represents the power of the crucified life that brings glory and honor to Me. It is the offering of self that brings a pleasing aroma before My throne.
The Cross represents great reward, for it represents all that has been purchased for you; not only in this life, but in the life to come. Christ willingly bore the Cross because he saw Himself bringing you to Me. That was His joy! Embrace the Cross. Embrace true life.
You have been sent as ambassadors to preach the Cross and show the world My love. Start by showing love to the family of God and love one another as I have loved you.
Galatians 2:20 Amplified Bible (AMP)
I have been crucified with Christ [that is, in Him I have shared His crucifixion]; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body I live by faith [by adhering to, relying on, and completely trusting] in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
Romans 12:1 Amplified Bible (AMP)
Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies [dedicating all of yourselves, set apart] as a living sacrifice, holy and well-pleasing to God, which is your rational (logical, intelligent) act of worship.
Hebrews 12:2-3 The Message (MSG)
12 1-3 Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we’d better get on with it. Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!