Lent Meditation Day 7
“On the cross, leadership dies … success dies … skills die … excellence dies. All my strengths, nailed to the cross. All of my weaknesses, nailed to the cross. All of my yearnings for bigger and better, for anything other than Christ himself, nailed to the cross.” —Leonard Sweet
A Note from Ruth
These meditations are a reflection of my personal journey through Lent at a time when I was experiencing deep spiritual growth and learning what it means to grow in community as a student at the Academy for Formation and Mission. In part, I wrote them to process my own thoughts, but mainly to share those contemplations, because I felt they were meant to be experienced by others. My hope was to encourage others to go deep, to see God and Lent with a new perspective, and to self-reflect in a way that brings hope.
Jesus sent the disciples out to sail across the lake before while he stayed at the mountainside, still grieving the loss of John the Baptist. We know the story: a storm rises and the disciples are afraid, Jesus come walking on the water and calms the sea, and the disciples finally realized who he was, “You are the Son of God,” they said.
At this time of recognition from the disciples, Jesus responded by telling them that soon he would be killed. And then, he told them that they, his followers, must deny themselves and carry their crosses.
So what does that mean to us. I believe that Sweet defines the Jesus meaning well. All that we strive to be in our lives goes to the cross, where we participate in the holy exchange. We give up our selves, and Jesus trades in our burdens for love. This is a cross worth bearing.