"Losing" one's life for Jesus' sake and the sake of the Gospel

In today’s Gospel, Mk 8: 34-9:1,  is that challenging saying: “…whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the Gospel will save it.” We have the example of Jesus and Mary who were obedient to the will of the Father for the salvation of the world, giving their very lives to that purpose.  Jesus is inviting us to lose our lives for His sake and for the sake of the Gospel, that is, that the Kingdom of God be realized here on earth.  We have the examples of Mother Teresa, of St. Francis of Assisi, of the Foundress of my own community,  of all the saints; of men and women religious, of priests  who  spend their lives for Jesus’ sake and the sake of the Gospel  and who, in the view of a secularistic, materialistic, consumeristic world seem foolish.  In fact, many young women and men considering religious life or priesthood are asked: “Why do you want to throw your life away?” When a parent stands by his/her wayward child or does not abort a mongoloid child, or an adult child invites his/her elderly parent to live with them, they could be perceived, in the eyes of the worldly, to be throwing their lives away.  When a young woman or man chooses a college career in order to make a difference in the lives of others versus choosing a career which guarantees “big bucks”, that person could be challenged with a statement such as: “What’ll want do that for? You’re wasting your life. You’ll never make money that way.” Do I have the courage to lose my life for the sake of Christ and His Gospel, or do I give in to those who taunt me for “throwing my life away?”