John 3:16

Sandpaper days: discouragement, guilt, anxiety, an endless circle of loneliness...
Despite this rut I've managed to dig myself into I still get up and go through my routine every day. My alarm goes off earlier than I'd really like and I get up. Every day: take a shower, do my hair, get dressed, pack my bag and get ready for class. One thing I do without fail is put on my cross necklace. I think it has become so much of a ritual that I don't even think about it, about its meaning...

Think about all the images of the cross in our culture-- How many times do you see the image of a rough-looking character with his big cross-pendants on a chain or a cross tattoo beside an ink-inscribed butterfly exposed by a much-too-tiny bikini? Of course, I do not intend to judge anyone; after all, who am I? But sometimes I just wanna shake them and shout, "LET JESUS BE YOUR BLING!!" It really doesn't have to be that drastic though; I don't have to look any further than my own reflection to see a lack of acknowledgement of the meaning of the cross.

What is it that the cross truly means? -pain and healing, defeat and victory, despair and hope, death and life. But most prominently, the cross represents an unashamed declaration of God's love. Of course we celebrate Christmas- a truly blessed occasion, but what was the birth of Jesus? A small affair, a few sheppards gathered to greet a baby in a manager. But the crucifixion, what a spectacle! He did not hide in a corner but was nailed on a cross in front of the masses, arms outstretched. -Unashamed Love-

Do you remember middle school crushes? -the first boyfriend or girlfriend? I remember one of my close friends and her relationship with a boy in our class. How they walked the halls, hand-in-hand, like a promenade in a country line dance, always close, but ready to let go in a moment if a teacher rounded the corner. We were masters of the art of passing notes; slipping the intricately folded paper from desk to desk when the teacher turned to the board or shoving a crumpled letter through the cracks of another's locker...

Sure, it's humorous how naive we were, but think about it. Think about that old love letter that you still have, tucked in a book, under your bed or stowed in the depths of your junk-drawer. It's that sickly-sweet, ridiculous, mushy, school-kid-type love that Jesus had for us when He chose to die for us on the cross. Completely open and unashamed. He was not afraid to make a public declaration of His love for us; He did not hide it in a corner, dying the most humiliating type of death possible. Not in the woods, in a far-off land, but in front of the masses, for all to see and know of His moving compassion for us.

See how God loves us, how God love YOU! ME! God gave us the most beautiful love letter of all time -the written word, yes- but the word made flesh: Jesus Christ-the man who died on the cross so that we might spend eternity with Him in paradise. Through Jesus Christ were the words written for the entire world to see. He didn't hide it; He shouted His love for you and for me. The cross may be many things, but one thing it is God's declaration of love.

In discussion with God, He doesn’t always say much, but the cross spoke words that will be echoed through eternity. It was His way of saying, “you want to know how much I love you?! You want to know how far I will go to make sure you know I care?! Well, here is my Love!”

So, what does the cross mean; this piece of metal that I place so ritualistically around my neck? I don't know what it means to you but to me it means comfort that I will never be alone, hope that God has great plans for me and a love so deep that I will never truly understand. This past week, every day when I reach for my necklace, I pause to remember. For Christ so loved us that He would rather go to Hell than to heaven without us; and He hung, not in a corner, not in the shadows, but high on a hill, arms outstretched eternally as if to say, "I Love You THIS Much."