Stationed on the Cross

One of the reasons I am thankful for this Doctor of Ministry program that I am a part of is that it is compelling me to continue taking up my cross and follow Christ in the mission of reconciliation. I strongly believe that reconciliation, real reconciliation, the down-to-the-bones kind not the spackle-and-paint kind will require me to die to myself daily. I presume that may be why reconciled lives are so rare.

In future posts, I will address various aspects of the reconciliation that Christ calls us into. We all need to be reconciled with God because of our own sins. This is the most common understanding of the ministry of reconciliation yet it does not come close to exhausting the subject. We must also reconcile ourselves to Christ’s plans for our lives, our churches, our communities, our families, etc. We must also live into his call to be reconciled with each other whether over the cultural divides of race, gender, class, politics, worldviews, level of education, the baseball team you follow, or the simple relational issues we encounter within our families.

One afternoon during our first week, we visited The Grotto, to walk the Stations of the Cross path, reflect on the theme of suffering, and then go up to the chapel on top of the cliff (with the great view) to pray together. In it all, I began to see a metaphor for our walk with Christ, for we are not only called to remember his suffering but to participate in it as we die to ourselves. From that experience, I wrote the following poem.

Stationed on the Cross

  “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth,

                          will draw all people to myself.” (John 12:32)

On a Faith-filled

Walk of remembrance,

Humbled, bowed down,

Quieted from the bustling lostness of man,

Listening together,

Christ counter-intuitively elevates us

To the high privilege, even glory

Of suffering with him,

Unto death.

It is from this vantage point

Stationed on the cross

That we can finally see,

Through his eyes,

Beholding the reconciling mission of Christ,

The very heart of God…

Participating passionately in

Creation’s celebratory song

As from each tribe we are revealed as family.

“If we have died with him, we will also live with him…”

 (2 Timothy 2:11)

© 2013 Greg K. Dueker

It is only as I die to my own selfish desires that I am free to participate in God’s mission in the world. I have to confess that I don’t like suffering and I don’t like denying myself. I find that I tend to die hard. Yet, Jesus, by the Holy Spirit, seems to celebrate even small victories, every attitude check, and each of my small obediences! For every moment I take my eyes off of myself he gives me a glimpse of his perspective and hope for the world. 

It is hard to build deep relationships of trust with others like we are having to do in our DMin cohort, yet I am finding it well worth it as we take up our stations on the cross!