Take My Life

Matthew 10:39
Romans 5:8
Romans 12:1-2

God never has and never will ask us to do something He wouldn't. Through Jesus Christ, He gave His life for us, but not just His physical life. People always thought Jesus would be an earthly king who would restore Israel as a world power. If anyone could have, it definitely would have been Him. However, He died to that identity. He gladly laid it down in order to eternally save the world instead of temporarily saving a nation. He denied all the pseudo prestige and power in order to receive "a crown that will last forever." (1 Corinthians 9:25)
Although I was unable to find a reference where God actually asks for us to lay down our lives, it is a common teaching that we should die for our faith. Of course, in all things we should strive to be like Christ. Many people have, in fact, given their physical lives for the spread of the gospel (more in the last one hundred years than all of history combined). Most of the time, however, God does not need us to give up our physical lives but rather our self-proclaimed identities. These identities are often referred to as our "lives." For instance, we may say, "Baseball is my life." Or, "My girlfriend is my life." Or, "The cohort is my life." God wants us to understand that He is the giver of life, both existence and true life. (Gen. 2:7, John 6:51, John 10:10, Rom. 8:11) Let us transform our identities into "God is life. Everything else is baseball, (or my girlfriend, cohort, etc.)"
"I told God I didn't want a game to be the most important thing in my life. I wanted what He offered. I asked Him to make Himself real to me and to help me put baseball where it should be - a vocation, not a life." -Andy Van Slyke (former Pittsburg Pirates outfielder)