Happy Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross!

   It always seems weird that we celebrate the Cross.  It feels like it goes against our nature to sacrifice and thus to celebrate a sacrifice as well.  And to some extent that is true.  We are fallen.  And yet, we hold up the many times that people sacrifice for others.  The soldier that sacrificed his life for his nation; the mother who sacrifices for her child; etc.  We celebrate others’ sacrifices, but why is it so hard for us to sacrifice then?

   Sacrificing is hard, because it requires us to give up some of ourselves.  Work itself is a sacrifice.  We could be spending time doing what we want, but we work for a purpose.  And so we see that sacrificing for a purpose makes sacrificing easier.  Indeed, many begin to enjoy work or other sacrifices because of the reward from these sacrifices.  So, why is it so hard for us to pick up our cross and follow Jesus?

   Putting in a day’s work in sacrifice, we expect a day’s pay.  And what of a lifetime of sacrifice?  Do we not get a reward worth the sacrifice?  Actually, we get a reward vastly worth more than any reward we could imagine.  If you invested a penny and got a millions dollars in return a moment later, you would still not receive a greater return on your investment, your sacrifice, than carrying your cross for Jesus.

   It was the death of Jesus on the Cross that crushed death.  And yet, the Cross was not the end.  It marked a new beginning.  As He rose, He restored our life to its full potential.  A potential that we can either embrace or reject.  But to embrace this potential, we must embrace our cross and follow Jesus.  You and I will suffer, but our sufferings are not the end.  They are but a beautiful opportunity to embrace our purpose of spending eternity with a God that loved us to the point of dying for us on His Cross.  The Cross is glorious and gives us hope that we too will rise again.

   Jesus, thank you for the gift of Yourself on the Cross, sacrificing Yourself for our salvation. Help us to pick up our cross and follow you. Amen.