Tomorrow is Good Friday. It is so easy to want to skip this torturous day and jump into the Easter celebration. However, we need to revisit this moment in history to witness the sacrifice Christ made for our salvation. I can’t begin to describe how difficult it was to write these Holy Week stories, but I forced myself to examine the details of scripture in order to paint a picture of the love Christ has for you and me. Please take a moment to read this poem from my original book, Eyewitness to a Savior. It places you on the road next to Jesus as He carries his cross to Golgotha. Experience the hope found within the poem and be assured this is not the end of the story.
Lighten the Load
The weight of the
heavy cross crushes
His already bruised
shoulder. Hunched
forward, His hands
grip the splintered
lumber that would
soon hold His body.
Sweat and blood
drip from His brow.
Shooting pain radiates
throughout a beaten
torso. Jesus inhales
a breath of courage
to forge the path ahead
leading to the Place of
the Skull, Golgotha.
He knows the torture
that awaits on that hill
of death. With every
faltering step, a whip
snaps and stings the
already ravaged body.
Crumbling to the ground,
He can go no further.
A passerby, Simon of
Cyrene, is ordered to
carry the cross. Tall
and muscular, the
healthy foreigner
hoists the death
chamber and easily
completes the journey.
Christ comes alongside
you and me. He carries
our burden and enables
us to complete our
faith venture successfully.
Emmanuel: God is with us.
Matthew 27:31-32 NIV