Sentimental Journey

Ever since I walked the Camino de Santiago, I’ve been on a quest to simplify my life as much as I can. There has been a lot of weeding, pruning, and purging in most of the areas of my life and recently, there has been a big push to downsize the “stuff.” The guys at the Goodwill up the street know my car and my face because I have made so many visits in the past several weeks. It feels good to purge. I even cleaned out mom’s entire garage while she was in Hawaii and moved both our cars in. De-cluttering has been an exercise in choosing things that matter, bring joy, and add to my life rather than distract, complicate, or weigh me down. It has been a sentimental journey for sure especially when I come across those old photos that plop you down for a good cry, or those tokens from past loves that you would never before consider parting with, or love letters upon love letters that remind you of being in love. These time capsules melt my heart in a way that cleanses it like a good rain. It has been important to do some proper goodbyes with much of it and it has been important to simply let it go without any ceremony at all. The “letting it go” part is what came to mind when I was reading today’s Gospel. Jesus gives us three ways to simplify our life, “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow me.” Simply put, I must get out of the way, pick up a victorious mindset (as in Jesus died on the cross to give me victory over sin and death), and then imitate Him in the world. 

I think it is safe to assume that we probably think to “take up your cross” means that there will be great suffering, and that the Christian life will bring much hardship, but suck it up anyway. What if we change our perspective and think to “take up your cross” is to take up your victory in Christ, to take up your freedom, to take up God’s healing, to take up God’s forgiveness, to take up God’s unconditional love for us, to take up the payment for our sin, and to take up the mercy of God? Wouldn’t that change everything? I’m not saying life will be free of suffering, but “the cross” is our victory banner, not our torture instrument. The cross has already been taken up by Jesus and so “taking up the cross” means taking up Jesus daily. Yes, suffering is a part of our human experience, and yes, suffering can be used as a way to unite ourselves to Christ’s heart, however, Jesus did not die to bring us affliction and pain, He died to bring us freedom, mercy, love, and forgiveness, therefore, our daily cross is carrying those things on our shoulders as a reminder of God’s radical love. What if denying myself becomes to deny that I cannot do anything apart from the mercy received through the cross? What if denying myself means I don’t need to save myself because Jesus has already saved me on the cross?

To come after Him is to pursue Him daily. Pursuing Him is like playing hide-and-seek with a toddler because they each LOVE being found!! His presence is what gives us the eyes to see the cross in a different light and the will to move out of His way and let Him be The Way. 

I don’t know about you, but this new perspective on “taking up your cross” changes everything for me. I’m not asked to take up an instrument of death and suffering that is heavy and terrible and crushing, I am asked to take up the love and the mercy that was poured out onto that cross, and I am asked to live in that love and mercy daily. His burden is light, remember? As I soak in His presence every morning, I am going to soak in the blessings of the cross and not focus on its heaviness. It is important to remember the pain of the cross, but it is more important to let its divine mercy wash over us daily, and that is the most sentimental journey of all. It is well with my soul. 

Reading 1 JAS 2:14-24, 26

What good is it, my brothers and sisters,
if someone says he has faith but does not have works?   
Can that faith save him?
If a brother or sister has nothing to wear
and has no food for the day,
and one of you says to them,
“Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well,”
but you do not give them the necessities of the body,
what good is it?
So also faith of itself,
if it does not have works, is dead.

Indeed someone might say,   
“You have faith and I have works.”
Demonstrate your faith to me without works,
and I will demonstrate my faith to you from my works.
You believe that God is one.
You do well.
Even the demons believe that and tremble.
Do you want proof, you ignoramus,
that faith without works is useless?
Was not Abraham our father justified by works
when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar?
You see that faith was active along with his works,
and faith was completed by the works.
Thus the Scripture was fulfilled that says,
Abraham believed God,
and it was credited to him as righteousness,
and he was called the friend of God.
See how a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.
For just as a body without a spirit is dead,
so also faith without works is dead.

Responsorial Psalm 112:1-2, 3-4, 5-6

R.    (see 1b)  Blessed the man who greatly delights in the Lord’s commands.
Blessed the man who fears the LORD,
who greatly delights in his commands.
His posterity shall be mighty upon the earth;
the upright generation shall be blessed.
R.    Blessed the man who greatly delights in the Lord’s commands.
Wealth and riches shall be in his house;
his generosity shall endure forever.
Light shines through the darkness for the upright;
he is gracious and merciful and just.
R.    Blessed the man who greatly delights in the Lord’s commands.
Well for the man who is gracious and lends,
who conducts his affairs with justice;
He shall never be moved;
the just man shall be in everlasting remembrance.
R.    Blessed the man who greatly delights in the Lord’s commands.

Alleluia JN 15:15B

R.    Alleluia, alleluia.
I call you my friends, says the Lord,
for I have made known to you all that the Father has told me.
R.    Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel MK 8:34–9:1

Jesus summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them,
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,
take up his cross, and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake
and that of the Gospel will save it.
What profit is there for one to gain the whole world
and forfeit his life?
What could one give in exchange for his life?
Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words
in this faithless and sinful generation,
the Son of Man will be ashamed of
when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”

He also said to them,
“Amen, I say to you,
there are some standing here who will not taste death
until they see that the Kingdom of God has come in power.”