Jesus: our supreme model of sacrifice

One of Mother Teresa’s quotes that has always held a special place in my heart is, “I have discovered the paradox that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.”

While going through today’s GPS and its accompanying passages, this quote came to mind. It led me to start thinking about the concept of sacrifice, and how it often involves some degree of pain, discomfort, or suffering. Sacrifice involves giving something up, sometimes something very dear to us.

On my dad’s side, my grandmother used to work as a laundry attendant at the Holiday Inn in Charleston, Illinois, while my grandfather served as the head of maintenance at the same hotel. During my childhood, I didn’t think much about their jobs. My most vivid memories are of watching my grandmother meticulously fold bed sheets and towels, with the unmistakable scent of the laundry room and bleach etched in my mind. After her work was done, my brother and I had the privilege of going for a swim in the pool, under our grandmother’s watchful eye. We cherished this added benefit of our grandparents working there.

At that time, I never truly considered my grandparents’ financial status. They always appeared to have plenty to provide for my brother, cousins, and me. It wasn’t until my college graduation that I learned about a deeply touching sacrifice my grandmother made on my behalf.

Women of her generation frequented what she affectionately referred to as the “beauty salon” weekly, sometimes daily, where they had their hair washed and styled. I didn’t quite grasp the allure of this routine, but my grandmother relished those visits. It was less about the pampering and more about the time she was able to spend there with her friends. As I grew older, I noticed that she gradually reduced the frequency of these visits. I never asked her why; I simply assumed she had lost interest.

Fast forward a few years—I had completed college and started my first teaching job when my 90-year-old grandmother suffered a stroke from which she would never recover. While sitting with my grandfather at the hospital, our conversation somehow turned to her daily beauty salon visits. Curiosity prompted me to ask my grandpa why she had stopped going. He revealed that she had made a conscious decision to save the money she would have spent on those daily salon appointments to help cover part of my tuition. It wasn’t a substantial sum, but it was a profound sacrifice on her part. She gave up something she held dear to support my educational journey. She never said a word about it to me, but that small sacrifice held, and still holds, immeasurable significance in my heart.

My grandmother’s love for me ran so deep that she gave and sacrificed to the point of personal discomfort, ultimately expressing her love for me in an even more profound manner.

Sacrifice comes in various forms and magnitudes. Some sacrifices may appear more substantial than others. But all sacrifices require us to give something up, to forgo personal comfort, in order to benefit and bless others.

In this season of a Capital Campaign and Stewardship Commitments, I am seeking God’s guidance to discern what I can sacrifice to bless others, both now and for generations to come. My sacrifice may seem modest compared to others, but it’s not about the size of the sacrifice. It’s about the intentions of the heart and the desire to be a source of blessing to others through love.