“If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross every day and follow me.” Luke 9:23
It is not always easy to follow Jesus, to live out our faith in our actions or to keep believing when times are tough.
We all face challenges. Everyone struggles with something. We can feel abandoned and alone. As if nobody cares.
But in today’s gospel, Jesus reminds us that his destiny was to suffer too. That he knows how it feels to be in pain, to be rejected. And he calls us each day to try again. To pick up our cross every day and to carry on, knowing that he is with us.
When Amie’s youngest daughter Lombeh was born in Sierra Leone a little over four years ago, all was well. But a short while later, Amie noticed that Lombeh wasn’t growing. She became dangerously malnourished.
Amie and her husband Borbor did all they could to help their daughter. They visited many different traditional herbalists, but nothing worked.
Although Amie was very worried, she never lost faith. As she said: “I was always hoping for the best.”
Eventually Amie heard about the Handmaid Sisters’ clinic and she was able to get the help and support that she needed. Lombeh is now a happy and healthy four-year-old.
So today, let us pick up our cross and face our difficulties for another day, strengthened by our hope in God. And as we do, may we be inspired to reach out in whatever way we can to help others who are facing challenges, no matter where in the world.