Fifth Stop! The Cross
Hello Friends!
How was your week? I was so happy to see the sun shining the other day! I hope spring is coming and is deciding to stay around for awhile. I don’t mind the low temperatures, but I am ready to be outside without getting cold! Plus, with warmer temperatures, that means that the school year is coming to an end and summer vacation is just around the corner!
Do you remember any of the stops that we have made so far? Yep, we stopped to see a rooster. The rooster reminds us that Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples and friends, denied him. Peter said three times that he didn’t know Jesus. Sometimes in life we will get in trouble for something that we didn’t know we were doing; but Jesus is there to forgive us of our sins. Where else did you go? The Garden, that’s right! Our second stop was at the Garden of Gethsemane. In the Garden, Jesus prayed while his disciples fell asleep, not once, not twice, but three times. And because some of the disciples kept falling asleep, Jesus felt alone. He prayed that God would remove this task from his life; but in the end Jesus said “this is not my will but your will be done.” Have you ever felt alone? Your friends did something without you. How did you feel? Jesus praying in the Garden reminds us that with God in our life, we are never alone. Do you remember where our first stop was? It was at the Upper Room. In the Upper Room, Jesus gathered with his disciples around a table and had a meal. At the end of the meal Jesus offered his disciples what we call Holy Communion. Jesus gave his disciples bread and juice to tell his disciples that he loves them. Holy Communion is our reminder that Jesus loves us and that we are to love our parents, our siblings, our grandparents, and our friends like Jesus loves us.
Do you remember where we travelled last week? Yep, we travelled to the Palace of Pilate! Pilate saw Jesus as doing nothing wrong, but he was still seen as a bad person. Pilate, under pressure by the crowd, sentenced Jesus to die on the cross. Have you ever been in trouble for doing something that you didn’t do? Did your brother push you and then blamed you for pushing him? That’s kind of what happened to Jesus. Jesus didn’t do anything wrong, but the people were blaming him for everything. Jesus, while standing before Pilate, decided to take the punishment and didn’t say anything. Jesus reminds us that sometimes in life we will get in trouble for something we didn’t do; and when that happens we shouldn’t fight back but know that we are protecting someone else in our life.
Today, we are continuing our journey, so buckle up and start your engines! From the Palace of Pilate, Jesus travelled to the cross. Along the way, Jesus got hurt. The Roman Soldiers beat him up. Have you ever gotten hurt? Did you cry? Did you scream? Did someone come help you? When I was six years old, my sister got me my very first bicycle without training-wheels. I felt so cool. I felt like I was on top of the world. So, I decided to start showing-off! The next thing I knew, I was on the ground crying with a big scrape on my elbow. I no longer wanted to ride my new bicycle. Jesus got hurt and he didn’t even ask for a Band-Aid, and there I was crying over a small scrape. Jesus got hurt because he loves you. Jesus got hurt because he didn’t want us to hurt anymore. Jesus got hurt so that we would be strong enough to get back on the bicycle. Then while Jesus was on the cross, his pain didn’t go away. People tried to help him, but he didn’t want any help. Jesus was strong, tough, and determined. Jesus experienced pain before and after being placed on the cross.
The next time you get hurt, remember it’s okay to cry and ask for a Band-Aid. But also remember, Jesus is your forever Band-Aid that will always protect you because of the promise he made on the cross. Next week, we are going to see a parade and learn more about the cross. We better stop and put fuel in our cars before we continue!
Your Friend, Holy Spirit!
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