This morning I walked the Grace UMC prayer trail and meditated on the stations of the cross. I love doing this, especially during Holy Week.
The meditation guide we publish reads "The Stations of the Cross invite us into an ancient and wonderful form of walking meditation. This is a powerful way to contemplate, and enter into, the mystery of Jesus' gift of himself to us. As we reflect on the passion, it moves the experience fr
om one of the head to one of the heart. It becomes an imaginative exercise of the senses and emotions."
It seems like it is always a new experience. I reflected on how grateful I am for 7 wonderful years at Grace and for my call to take up the cross and serve Saint Mark. I thought of all the struggles and internal wrestlings that I face as a Christian in ministry. I thought of the joy of walking through it with the help of God and many friends. As I meditated about each point along the way of Jesus, I connected the dots with my own experiences spanning different situations.
Christ walked the way of redemption for me, so he knew the depths of my struggle as well as the heights of my joy. My story makes sense in light of the larger story of redeeming love. The Christian journey is a path, a pilgrimage. When ancient Christians journeyed to Jerusalem, they established the tradition of walking the path he walked. In time, when this became impractical, replicas of the way of the cross developed in villages in Europe. Many, many people have walked this walk. And I walk it today.
God is good. Life is good. Love is good.
