Luke 9:23 (AMPC)
“…let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me.”
Daniel stopped counting months because in the beginning, he recorded everything carefully with each prayer request being noted, each expectation written with faith, but as weeks stretched into months, his faith began to shrink and he slipped into praying but there was no visible change to justify his PERSISTENCE.
One night, he became frustrated and so he threw all restraints out of the window. He was just seated idly and a thought, though quiet but dangerous, settled in his heart as he told and assured himself that Maybe God is waiting for me to act. What followed was not sin in the obvious sense, nor was it rebellion anyone could easily name, but it was independence and the decision brought swift relief, yet it exacted a hidden cost. His peace slipped away, prayer became labourious instead of being refuge, and Scripture, which was once warm and alive, felt distant, as though the fire had withdrawn and left only embers behind.
But one early morning, after days and weeks of chasing his own course, Daniel was reading about Abraham and the long wait for a promised son. As he read this familiar story, he saw it with new clarity, of how impatience brought forth Ishmael, and how one fleshly decision that was made by emotions and ‘care’ for his spouse, carried consequences that stretched far beyond a single moment.
As Daniel sat with the text, he realized that waiting is often the place where self is exposed most brutally. When nothing shifts outwardly, something begins to stir inwardly, and the flesh rises, restless and demanding control where trust is being tested.
Dying to self often feels like restraint when every instinct demands action. It is the discipline of stillness while the flesh clamours for control and it is that moment of silence God usually uses as a refining tool, stripping us of self-dependence and exposing the subtle ways in which we trust our own wisdom and might. Long before He changes circumstances, He insists on changing ownership, removing our grip from my plan and reestablishing His rule as His will.
That morning Daniel repented, not for what he had done, but for ceasing to trust in the LORD as he ought to. He laid his hands fully on God’s will and released the burden entirely. By doing that, peace returned, steady and unshakable, long before any visible answers appeared, and in that peace he knew without doubt that self was crucified and placed firmly back on the altar.
Practical Application
Today, identify one area where you are tempted to rush God. Write it down clearly. Pray deliberately, saying: “Lord, I surrender control of this matter.” Resist making new decisions about it for the next 24 hours. Each time anxiety rises, verbally declare, “I trust God’s timing.”
Confession
Father, I acknowledge that my flesh hates waiting, but my spirit chooses trust. I lay down my need for control, my fear of delay, and my desire to rush Your process. I declare that You are faithful, wise, and intentional in all You do. I crucify impatience and self-dependence, and I receive grace to wait with peace. My life is not driven by urgency but by obedience. I follow You fully, trusting that what You have promised, You will surely perform in Your perfect time.
Related Scriptures: Proverbs 3:5–6; Galatians 2:20
Weekly Bible Reading: Genesis 3
