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Sacrifice

Usually a religion or some other strong belief system requires a 'sacrifice', not necessarily as in to spill the blood of another, but as in; to give of your time, emotion, sweat, etc. The kind of sacrifice we are discussing here is the kind that makes you uncomfortable or requires true desire... for example: donating a considerabe portion of money, giving service, fasting, walking long distances, isolation, etc. What sacrifice does your religion dictate should come from you?

Sacrifice

Tithing. I know that people who really are very poor, it is really hard for them to tithe their little salary and sometimes they have to choose between paying their tithes or buy groceries . I have seen this many times and it humbles me greately and I know God sees those actions and great sacrifices, just like the woman in the Scriptures who gave the two mices (spelling?) in the Temple, she gave everything she had and greately will be her reward.

Sacrifice Beliefs Religious General

While tithing is an important sacrifice, I think there is a more important and effective one - fasting.

Fasting, by denying oneself food and water for a set period, is an intensely personal form of sacrifice. Since the word sacrifice indicates "make sacred", similar to sanctify, the personal aspects of fasting applies to making oneself sacred.

Fasting is also a tenet of virtually all religions.

Sacrifice

I agree that tithing and fasting are key sacrifices. The reasons have already been mentioned. Another is service.

What exactly is service? To me, it is helping another person in a temporal manner when it is not convenient for you. Our acts of service show the people to whom we offer them, the love of God (regardless of what form of God you worship). It makes that love more real for them.

Sacrifice

Great explanation. Service is also give of what you have or use, not what you don't want anymore.

Sacrifice

For me, my religion requests that I sacrifice my "natural man" tendencies. That is, it asks that I turn away from things of the world- things like money, immorality, power, etc- and center my life on following Christ's teachings. We have to ignore the trends of the world and stand and be counted, often losing popularity and friendships in the process. I think this is one of the hardest and most important sacrifices LDS people have to make. But with every sacrifice comes blessings, and that's what makes it worth while.

Sacrifice

These are all great thoughts and things that we need to sacrifice in order to gain exaltation. Another thought that hit me right away is that God requires us to have "a broken heart and a contrite spirit." I looked up this topic on the lds.org/ website and found this information (All quoted information is from the same website):

3 Nephi: 9:20 "And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit. And whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, him will I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost..."

D&C 59:8 "Thou shalt offer a a sacrifice unto the Lord thy God in righteousness, even that of a broken heart and a contrite spirit."

Only those who have a broken heart and contrite spirit can receive the full blessings of the Lord's atonement.

Psalms 34:18 "The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit."

Offtopic but, Additional information for the same website: The GUIDE TO THE SCRIPTURES: BROKEN HEART, says, "To have a broken heart is to be humble, contrite, repentant, and meek-that is, receptive to the will of God." The GUIDE TO THE SCRIPTURES: SACRIFICE says, "In the Church today members partake of the sacrament of the bread and the water in remembrance of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Members of Christ's Church today are also asked to offer the sacrifice of a broken heart and a contrite spirit (3 Ne. 9: 19-22). This means that they are humble, repentant, and willing to obey God's commandments.

Sacrifice General Religious Beliefs

My religion believes in tithing as a means of sacrifice, but a lot of churches I have visited, and those I was more inclined to seek membership at, also focused on giving sacrifice of yourself if you don't have the money to tithe. This was something I talked to my campers about this past Summer. Being a teenager or a young age often leaves young Christians feeling as if they can't tithe anything because they don't have any form of income.

I believe that a person can tithe their time, energy, and focus to the Lord. Tithing can be something as simple as fasting from the television for a day, and spending the time that one would normally spend watching t.v. worshipping God. That way, younger people dont' feel as if they have no way of tithing to God simply because it can't be a monetary sacrifice. The greatest and most important sacrifice we can give to God is our obedience.