Thursday after Ash Wednesday

If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. What profit is there for one to gain the whole world yet lose or forfeit himself?

We are all called to take up our daily crosses. Running away from or otherwise avoiding them gains us nothing. The crosses we are asked to carry are different for each person and in accord with what we can carry. God never gives us more than we can handle, especially when we accept His help. Some of us carry crosses that test our faith, others our hope, and still more our love. The weight of these crosses can feel unbearable and even cause us to fall when we are weak, but we should not be discouraged. Even Jesus fell. The important thing is to get back up and keep walking the path God has prepared for us. In the end, we might have to make the ultimate sacrifice just as Jesus did, but as long as we let God lead us to where He wants us, then our lives will be a triumph, too.

Do we deny ourselves even the goods of our lives in order to take up our daily crosses? Are we willing to lose our lives for our faith? What can we do to cultivate the habit of getting back up from our falls into sin and temptation so that we can continue down the road to salvation?

O Lord, give us the strength to bear our daily crosses.

Amen.