To willingly sacrifice yourself as an offering to God you must be willing to be placed on the altar and go through the fire. You must be willing to experience what the altar represents— burning, purification, and separation for only one purpose— the elimination of every desire and affection not grounded in or directed toward God.

But you don’t eliminate it, God does. See to it that you don’t wallow in self-pity once the fire begins. After you have gone through the fire, there will be nothing that will be able to trouble or depress you. When another crisis arises, you will realize that things cannot touch you as they used to do.

Tell God you are ready to be poured out as an offering, and God will prove Himself to be all you ever dreamed He would be.

Oswald Chambers (via deartotheheart)