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Take up your cross and follow Him
Take up your cross and follow Him,
And crucify every fleshly whim.
Take up your cross and follow Him,
And sing to God a holy hymn.
Take up your cross and follow Him,
And avoid an eternal fate that’s grim.
Take up your cross and follow Him,
And fill up your faith beyond the brim.
Take up your cross and follow Him,
And don’t let your lamp grow dim.
Take up your cross and follow Him,
And don’t fear for life nor limb.
Only in the Cross of Christ will we receive power when we are powerless
Only in the Cross of Christ will we receive power when we are powerless. We will find strength when we are weak. We will experience hope when our situation is hopeless. Only in the Cross is there peace for our troubled hearts. (Michael Youssef)
Forget not the Cross
Forget not the time when Jesus came,
In the mission of God’s Holy Name.
He came to save sinners, you and I,
For us on the Cross he did die.
Forget not God’s love divine,
When for us he did the Gospel assign.
Because his Son Jesus for our sins paid the price,
By his crucifixion, the ultimate sacrifice.
Forget not the Cross of Christ sublime,
Only by it you can towards heaven climb.
Honour the Lord God by word and deed,
Surrender to him each worry and need.
Carry your cross daily
Carry your cross daily O believer,
And do not listen to the deceiver.
Carry it for Christ’s honour,
Even if you’re in a lonely corner.
Hold on to your cross even if others fail,
Be steadfast in both spring and hail.
Consider the saints and witness of God above,
For they endured in holiness and love.
Crucify the flesh and its sinful desires,
And you’ll escape the everlasting fires.
Don’t please the haters of your soul,
For destruction is their goal.
Walk towards the Lord God with humility,
To receive peace greater than worldly tranquility.
Ask for grace if you find the cross difficult to carry,
Don’t be overconfident and unwary.
Your number one focus must be your relationship with God
This is written for those in God through Jesus Christ, that they must be focused on the Lord God first. Everything else follows that. It doesn’t mean you neglect your duties towards your family, school, work, nation etc. But rather that these duties do not keep you away from following God.
A person who truly follows Christ will not say, that he or she loves family so much, that they will sell drugs to maintain their family. Nor will such a person think that to keep friendship with any person they need to give up on holiness. The Christian faith is on earth but our priorities are always to be for the Lord’s glory each moment.
With that being the case, we are not left helpless to face our daily lives. But as we put God first, the Lord God blesses us with his graces even more. For Jesus himself spoke the grace for us to be provided by God his father by saying “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you “(refer Mathew 6:31-33).
Now the faith to receive God’s grace in such a manner is not to be taken lightly. One cannot doubt his existence and next time start expecting his graces. So any person who wants God’s grace must always begin in existence of the Lord God and also believe that he rewards those who seek him.
For if you believe God will not forgive you for stealing then as per your faith it’ll be granted, which is that you won’t be forgiven. But if you sincerely and truly believe that God can forgive you then surely you will be forgiven. Grace too works the same way as your faith. Therefore expect the grace of God by first respecting the grace of God in your prayers, words and actions.
And then don’t worry about the world’s opinions on God but go only by the truth, which is the Gospel in times of universal deceit. The cross is what you must carry rather than the vanity, pleasures and worries of the world. Scripture does say that world and it’s lust are passing away but he who does the will of God shall live for ever. So don’t get enticed by the world that is fading away but focus on God who’ll be in glory for ever.
For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. (1 Corinthians 1:18)
Take Up Thy Cross
Take up thy cross, the Saviour 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 soul with vain 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;
The Lord for thee the cross endured
To save thy soul from death and hell.
Take up thy cross, then, in His strength,
And calmly every danger brave;
‘Twill guide thee to a better home,
And lead to victory o’er the grave.
Take up thy cross, and follow Christ,
Nor think till death to lay it down;
For only he who bears the cross
May hope to wear the glorious crown.
—Charles William Everest
In the Cross is salvation
“In the Cross is salvation; in the Cross is life; in the Cross is protection against our enemies; in the Cross is infusion of heavenly sweetness; in the Cross is strength of mind; in the Cross is joy of spirit; in the Cross is excellence of virtue; in the Cross is perfection of holiness. There is no salvation of soul, nor hope of eternal life, save in the Cross.” ― Thomas à Kempis, The Inner Life
It is your personal responsibility to carry your own cross
And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. (Matthew 10:38-39)
Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. (Matthew 16:24-27)
We are called to carry our Cross. No one else can carry your cross. It is your personal responsibility. You must not be focused whether it is hard or easy to carry it. All you need to focus is that it is the right thing to do. Because in the Gospel Jesus Christ himself made it very clear that you need to carry it.
Jesus said, “Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:27)
Disciples of hope 