​ Dying to the Old Me

Day 3 – Tuesday, August 12, 2025

Dying to the Old Me

Scripture: “My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me…” — Galatians 2:20 (NLT)

Devotional

Sister, here’s the truth — you don’t just pick up your cross once and call it done.
You don’t “die to self” at an altar one Sunday and never wrestle with her again.
Dying to the old you is daily work. It’s waking up every morning and choosing, “Today, my will dies so God’s will can live in me.”

Galatians 2:20 is more than a memory verse — it’s the blueprint for carrying your cross. The cross was an instrument of death. When Jesus tells us to “take up your cross daily” (Luke 9:23), He’s telling us to willingly crucify our old desires, old habits, old thinking — every single day — so that His life can be seen in us.

Why daily?

Because the old self doesn’t stay in the grave quietly. She will knock on the door of your heart again and again. She’ll try to remind you of old coping mechanisms, old pleasures, old ways of fighting your battles. She’ll whisper, “It’s not that bad. You can handle this without God.” And if you’re not actively picking up your cross and nailing her there every day, she’ll slip back in and take over.

For the women of Encouraging Her Resilience, this is critical in recovery. You can’t just avoid the thing that once destroyed you — you have to kill the appetite for it daily. That means:

When anger rises — crucify it.
When fear whispers — crucify it.
When shame tries to wrap its chains around you — crucify it.
And then, let Christ’s love, peace, and truth take that empty space.

This is not weakness. This is spiritual warfare. The act of dying to self is the act of saying, “I trust God’s way over mine, even when my flesh is screaming to take control.” It’s surrendering the pen of your story and letting Him write it — every day.

The old you cannot carry the new life God is calling you into. She can’t handle His blessings because she doesn’t have the character to sustain them. So you put her on the cross, and you leave her there. And tomorrow, you’ll have to do it again. And the next day. And the next.

How This Scripture Connects to Picking Up Your Cross

The cross is a place of death — daily death to self means daily picking it up.
You cannot follow Jesus on your terms — your cross means His will, not yours.
Resurrection power comes after crucifixion — there’s no new life without daily surrender.

Application Steps

Morning Crucifixion – Each morning, list one thing your flesh wants that you will surrender to God today.
Midday Check-In – Ask, “Am I carrying my cross right now, or am I carrying my old self?”
Evening Reflection – Thank God for every moment you chose His way over your own today.