Shadow of the Cross

This deep into Lent, the shadow of the cross falls over everything- a reminder that, even for God's most faithful one, there is no path around the darkness. Yet there lingers also the hope, the already-and-not-yet promise, that the days are surely coming when even the cross gives way to life.

-Richard Floyd

Jen and I were talking about darkness, and how it somehow creeps into our lives. Sometimes it is in the form of thoughts that make us think the worst, the negative, the dreadful. But we forget that Jesus went through such darkness when nobody (not even angels) intervened with Jesus' suffering and death. Jesus could have called on the angels, but then He would have given up His human-ness to relate to us. Sometimes we have to go through the darkness in order to get to the light.

As usual, when Jen and I talk about struggles, our conclusion brings us around to the heart of the matter. This time about the selfish nature we all have. The worldly thought is that people somehow belong to us (thinking he/she is mine), but that is not what the Bible tells us. We turn to Scripture for truth:

For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Corinthians 4.5-6)

We do not belong to people, but to God. 1 Corinthians 6.20 tells us that we are not our own. We were bought with a price. Jesus' death carried the weight of all our sins. Sins that would otherwise bring us to death. Our home is truly with Him and when we let that knowledge sink down deep into our souls, it is such a freeing feeling. For our loved ones that we have lost never belonged to us, but they are now home with God. Take comfort.