Passion Sunday’s liturgical readings begin with Palm waving & then take us through the whole account of Christ’s passion found in the Gospel of Luke, chapters 22 and 23.

As we contemplate the ultimate sacrifice Jesus made for us, here are some thoughts and a poem your humble blogger wrote a few years ago on Passion Sunday.  May they help prepare our hearts and minds for Easter…

Facing death may be a tough challenge, but what gets me most about the Passion is how Jesus sacrificed Himself – for us.  And, you know what? Sacrifice might be a scarier concept than death, because it involves little deaths to self each time we choose to lay our lives down for others. While reading today, a quote from G.K. Chesterton popped out: “the Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried.”  This made me pause & reflect on SACRIFICE as an ideal, for real…

SACRIFICE
..is not necessarily easy or nice…
it’s HARD and TOUGH to do.

SACRIFICE
…lay down our lives?
…pick up our crosses?
(Jesus’ yoke making burdens Light –
they’re still there, however much we fight…)

SACRIFICE = a journey
a process, one day at a time
letting go of ourselves
doing the ‘next thing’ –
small steps of faith, small ‘tries’
amidst difficulties, despair, frustrated sighs.

Letting go of what we can’t do…
so God CAN do. It. Through. Us.
Our sacrifices made aNew.

JESUS –

The Glue
Keeping disparate pieces of our lives
(minds, hearts, spirits)
Together
(no matter the weather…)

SACRIFICE –
‘tis hard, that’s true
laying our lives down…
But, as we try it…
God DOES make us New!

SACRIFICE
Tis’ a difficult ideal
(for real!!!)

…but a Person to follow
God in man (& woman!)
each day our hearts to fill
Flames of Fire
…Love incarnate on a Cross bleeding
…may our minds & spirits be heeding

JESUS CHRIST…

To know Him still
each day, in every way

Mercy in forgiving
Grace abounding
Joy in living
Love surrounding…
plus Peace & Understanding
& the Wisdom to do –

acts of kindness, courage & selflessness
without much trumpeted ado.

 All for Him…
Ideals in living – who counts the cost?
Far richer the sacrifice
in Him Who makes ALL things New.

Broken hearts, dashed dreams
…& our stumbles along the way
HE takes us in as we are
from the rough & tumble fray

The Cross, HIS Sacrifice
…Leads us…
Every Day

…….

So, sacrifice? an ideal? … yes, ’tis  possible – in Christ! – for real.

——

grace, peace & sacrifice

Virginia : )

Photo: St. Augustine, Mission Nombre de Dios (November, 2015)