This article that appears below has caught me up like few articles really have. Consider your own identity, what you think makes you tick. Consider something you were born with and is part of you like your hand. Now, think about giving that identity up; think about walking away from that thing that makes you tick; think about cutting off your hand. I am re-blogging this article without any intention to address the controversial issue that resides inside. Consider the example as it might relate to any particular thing that might stand in the way of a closer relationship with Christ: riches, comfort, eating, career, popularity…. The Bible is pretty clear on the things that separate us from God – the things that we are tempted to pursue, embrace and hold on to. Consider that 1 Thessalonians 5:22 urges us to “abstain from evil”; and consider that the word, “abstain”, in the Greek means “to have one thing by separating from (letting go of) another”. We hold fast to Christ, by letting go of all that is not of Christ – that letting go includes our very selves.