The word sacrifice may bring to mind a number of images: perhaps you envision a sheep on an altar, or Mayans throwing people into volcanoes, or a child giving a friend the last popsicle on a hot day. Some sacrifices seem small and insignificant, like letting someone cut in front of you in line. Others seem enormous, like giving up a career to take care of a sick relative. Whatever the magnitude, sacrifice is an unavoidable part of life.

We generally think of sacrifice as giving up something that we possess: our time, money, food, clothing, etc. This is what makes sacrifice difficult, and when we focus only on what we’re giving up, we sacrifice more reluctantly and less confidently. We may become angry, resentful, and bitter. But as one writer explained,

‘Sometimes when you sacrifice something precious, you’re not really losing it. You’re just passing it on to someone else.’

Mitch Albom, The Five People You Meet in Heaven

A boy gives up the last popsicle so his friend can have it. Parents give up comforts and pleasures so their children can have more. A soldier gives her life so her fellow countrymen can keep theirs.

When our focus shifts from what we’re losing for ourselves to what we’re giving to someone else, we are empowered to make sacrifices we might not otherwise have the courage or strength to make.

Giving things up isn’t the only way we sacrifice, however; sometimes we take something from others so they don’t have to experience it themselves: a difficult task, an uncomfortable phone call, a punishment. A child takes the blame for his sibling’s mistakes. A parent works tirelessly so her child can go to school and have a better job in the future.

No matter who you are or what you’ve done in your life, I’m willing to bet dozens of people have made sacrifices for you. Whether it’s parents, teachers, friends, or even strangers, many people have given up time, money, pleasure, and more so that you can have what you have and do what you do. Be grateful for them. The only way to waste a sacrifice is to let it be for nothing, to let it pass you by without taking advantage of what has been offered.

The Atonement of Jesus Christ is the most important sacrifice ever made. Christ gave His life so that we could have ours. He was wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities so that we, if we choose, don’t have to be. He experienced all our pains, temptations, and afflictions so that we don’t have to experience them alone. God gave His Son, and the Son gave Himself, for us. They gave more than we can comprehend so that we can have more than we can comprehend. It was a sacrifice of infinite value. Let us not waste it.

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