Paul said, "I placed a high value on knowing Christ and disesteemed everything else as if it were dung." That's a strong statement. Most Christians can't say that—which is the reason we can't do what Paul did.
Some people place so much value on their marriage, career, and other people's acceptance that it honestly competes for the worth they've placed on the things of God. If that's you, you need to make a decision and say, "Lord, there is nothing that could even remotely tempt me to ever decrease the value I place on You and what You've done in my life." Then you need to magnify and glorify God, and disesteem everything else.

Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
(Heb. 12:1-2)

Notice the phrase "despising the shame." The Greek word rendered despising literally means "to disesteem." It's the exact opposite of esteeming, glorifying, magnifying, valuing, and prizing. Jesus disesteemed the shame associated with what He had to go through.

You cannot truly glorify God and everything else at the same time. It's like that seesaw we talked about. Both ends can't be up at the same time. You must esteem one and disesteem everything else. Jesus disesteemed the shame associated with His crucifixion. He intentionally minimized and shrunk the cost.

That's not the way most of us function. If you or I had been called on by God to suffer crucifixion, we probably would have immediately looked at the shame, cost, and pain. We would have valued our own life, peace, and security in such a way that we wouldn't have been able to value what God called us to do.

But Jesus had already disesteemed His own life. (Phil. 2:5-8.) He viewed everything else as worthless compared to what God had said and done.

Dung!
Paul did the same:

But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ.
(Phil. 3:7-8)

You place a value on everything in your life. You are the one who esteems what's important to you. Paul said, "I placed a high value on knowing Christ and disesteemed everything else as if it were dung." That's a strong statement.

Most Christians can't say that—which is the reason we can't do what Paul did. It's also why we don't have the same joy. Paul wrote the book of Philippians while in prison. Yet, it's his happiest book. He used the words "joy," "rejoice," and "rejoicing" a total of seventeen times in just four chapters. Paul was praising God and rejoicing from jail.

If you were thrown in prison this evening, would you be singing and praising the Lord at midnight? Probably not.

You place so much value and worth on your life, freedom, and possessions. You've put so much value on things that are unimportant. Your life is important, but compared to God it's worth nothing. You need to place a relative worth on your life. As long as you are the center of your universe, you are always going to be upset when someone rubs you the wrong way. If you are all wrapped up in yourself, you make a very small package.

Source: Discovering the Keys To Staying Full of God by Andrew Wommack
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers