Modern Day Human "Sacrifice"

Scripture I'm reflecting on:  Romans 12:1
      "And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you.  Let them be a living and holy sacrifice-the kind he will find acceptable."

This is the type of verse that a nonbeliever will point out in attacking the Bible.  I could sadly see myself a few years ago (before my eyes were opened to the Lord) laughing at this verse and showing how crazy the Bible was because it was advocating human sacrifice (or some other ignorant argument).  But not even a literal reading of this line would signal that, as I would've been skipping over the most important part:  "let them be a LIVING and holy sacrifice...."

Reflection:
What does it mean to be a living and holy sacrifice?  I gave some thought to doing some research on this to see what others had to say on this verse, but after a little thought I decided to just give my (absolutely unprofessional)  opinion, because I don't think its all that complicated.  I think we are simply being asked to go through our day and offer it as worship to God, through our actions and relationships.  And by day, that means ALL day, ALL the time, "24-7".  Not just a trip to church, a quick prayer, a couple of good deeds, etc.

Think back over your day.
Would you consider your interactions a "living sacrifice" God would find acceptable?  Were you kind and friendly to the cashier at the coffee shop?  A co-worker?  Fellow competitor?
Would your tasks/activities you performed today measure up?  An assignment you turned in?  A phone call with your family?  Soccer game?  Leisurely jog?
Did you pass up an opportunity to help someone out because you were "in a hurry"?  Pass up an opportunity to do a good deed because "you were busy"?

I think it comes down to the simple question, is what I'm doing right now serving the Lord the way we would like?

I think a common misconception (especially for me), is that our worship has to occur in Church, or in formal prayer.  Paul shows us in this passage though that we can always be worshiping the Lord by offering our body (our daily actions) up to Him.  I don't know about you, but this is an exciting revelation to me.  Just think over the course of your day just how many times you have to please the Lord!

Final Thought:
No one is perfect (even despite what I say often, me either :))......I am certainly not saying we should ALWAYS be perfect in all of our daily routines.  Not only is that not realistic, but I don't think its possible.  However, if we remember this verse and reflect on it throughout our day, thinking of it in the context of serving the Lord, good things will happen.  We will improve ourselves spiritually.  We will probably brighten the days of the people around us.  We will probably be much happier in general.  And most importantly, we will be pleasing the Lord.