Matthew 16:25 “For whoever wishes to save his life [in this world] will [eventually] lose it [through death], but whoever loses his life in this world for My sake will find it (that is, life with Me for all eternity).”
Christians are commanded to lose their lives. This means that we ought to deliberately release our lives to God and His kingdom. One of the biggest hindrances to doing this, is our view of what constitutes our view of our legitimate rights. The things that we feel like we have a right experience and enjoy. It is not hard to turn things over to Jesus if they are not a sacrifice or if they are things that we would rather do without anyway. It is the things that are good and the things that are dear to you that might stand between you and God’s will.
It is nice to close to your children or your grandchildren, but God might want you to go to another city or someplace where you cannot see them daily. You may assume that you have a right to certain material things, yet God could ask you to release all of your possessions to Him and His purposes (Matt. 19:21). Jesus modeled this attitude toward life. He had a legitimate right to enjoy the comforts of heaven, but He did not look at it as a right He should hold on to. He did not see leaving all that was His as a sacrifice that was too costly for Him (Phi.2:5-11). As a result, God highly exalted Him and brought salvation to the world.
Has the world convinced you that there are certain rights you have to protect? Are you trying to save your life? Have you noticed that in doing so, you are actually losing the life that God wants to give you?