......really hit home with me.
"Take up thy cross," the Savior said,
"If thou wouldst My disciple be;
Deny thyself, the world forsake,
And humbly follow after Me."
Take up thy cross, let not its weight
Fill thy weak spirit with alarm;
His strength shall bear thy spirit up,
And brace thy heart and nerve thine arm.
Take up thy cross, nor heed the shame,
Nor let thy foolish pride rebel;
Thy Lord for thee the cross endured,
And saved thy soul from death and hell.
Take up thy cross then in His strength,
And calmly sin's wild deluge brave,
'Twill guide thee to a better home,
It points to glory o'er the grave.
Take up thy cross and follow Christ,
Nor think til death to lay it down;
For only those who bear the cross
May hope to wear the glorious crown.
To Thee, great Lord, the One in Three,
All praise forevermore ascend:
O grant us in our home to see
The heavenly life that knows no end.
Can be sung to several tunes. But we sang it yesterday to Bourbon. A very different tune, which actually reminds me, in its rhythms, of sacred harp singing.
Perfect for yesterday, no?
But the thing that brought me to tears was that next to last verse. Go read it again.
Yeah. That one. "Nor think til death to lay it down." We're good about talking about picking up our crosses.
We're not so good about thinking about actually carrying them for the duration. And yet that is the task.
Are there respites? I think so. The sacraments, especially the Eucharist, give us respite. But more than that, maybe, they give us the strength to carry on.
Never a day without a cross, I think.
At least not one in union with Christ.
