"Before one can be a disciple of Jesus," says Wally Drotts, "he must decide if he is prepared to go to death for Him and with Him." This "death" may not be physical such as the Christian martyrs suffered. Nor is it a devaluation of our humanity. The "letting go" that Christ demands, says the author, is a willing sacrifice of ourselves to God's call.

These pages are a profound meditation on the deepest movement of the Christian life. They do not present the Christian religion as reassuring "sweet talk," but summon us instead to the fullness of discipleship that is learned only in renunciation.

Those who do not give up their lives willingly will find life taken from them. But those who choose to walk into the valley of death with Jesus at their side will not be overcome.

Wally Drotts attended Wayne University, North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago, and earned a doctorate in ministry from San Francisco Theological Seminary. He is presently minister of parish life at Fair Oaks Presbyterian Church in Fair Oaks, California.