image by Christopher Sardegna from Unsplash Luke 9: 23 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me." Taking up the cross was something that only condemned criminals did. When they took that cross up, they knew what it signified; that they were on a path that would end in them leaving this world behind. When Jesus used the cross as a symbol of discipleship, it was a sobering analogy. Prompted by Search the Scriptures, I found myself wondering what it meant to take up your cross daily. Denying your lusts and idols, dying to sins--those should be the first things that come to our mind when we visualize the cross, and what happened to Christ on it, because of us. This should be an ongoing activity every day in our lives, something we are consciously and actively pursuing, and not just an isolated burst of feeling that we experienced on the day we were converted. Together with this comes an awareness of reliance and need on God, since by nature this process requires His help. The cross also becomes a visual image of living each day in the knowledge that we are on the road to death, to an end. Carrying with you a reminder that our time here is temporary, and we're on our way--soon--to a spiritual realm. And not just carrying unwillingly, but voluntarily picking it up each day. Thinking over this, I could see what transformation this would work, at least for myself: Our eyes would be opened to discern true priorities, freeing us from the things that don't really matter, but which we so easily are enslaved by; A heightened appreciation for life and the blessings God has given to us while we are here; Enables us to have more patience, and more loving interactions with others; Helps us to have freedom and peace from worrying too much about the future; Nurtures a more humble, peaceful self-awareness grounded in our purpose and our walk with God; Gives us a heightened sense of purpose and ownership over whatever time, opportunities, or resources we have. The instability, uncertainty, and fears that this pandemic wrought in our lives certainly make it easier to visualize what it means to live each day knowing that death lies ahead of us. But doesn't it always?
0 Comments
|
a small voiceWe write to know ourselves. categories
All
Click to set custom HTML
archives
September 2021
|