I´m not sure this is a "poem" per se, but it was written by my dear friend Betty, who writes poems - or at least poetry. I thought it was beautiful and certainly made me think. Do we forget the cross during the year and only emphasize its importance during the Easter season? I certainly hope I don´t!
I didn´t make any New Year´s Resolutions this year, probably because I had too much ELSE to do! And, frankly, it hasn´t been my custom for years. I´m busy doing what I do and that´s enough! But this is a good one - keep the cross before my mind´s eye this year, but not JUST the cross, but JESUS, who died on that cross to save me and give me life abundant! I guess if I keep that New Year´s Resolution, I don´t need any others!
The Cross in a Shopping Cart
By Betty Henry Taylor
As I started my walk in the gym at a neighborhood church this morning,
I rounded the corner of the elevated stage;
and there it was: a cross. In a shopping cart.
It more than filled the cart, but it could be transported as it was.
It had been used during the Easter season one more time. And I thought:
What if I could push the cart up to a check-out counter and say to the cashier,
“I don’t see a price tag on this. Can you tell me what it’s worth?”
[I can barely see now to write for the tears coursing down my cheeks.]
And then I think: What if I rolled the cart up to Heaven’s Gates and asked the Father,
“What is this worth?” He might say, “What is it worth to you?
It cost Me more than words can tell. But . . .
whatever price you put on it has already been paid. In full.”
As the tears continue to run down my cheeks, I think: What a Gift. What a Plan.
I’ve honored the meaning of the cross as long as I can remember.
Since childhood, I’ve seen the cross, and understood—to some degree—its significance.
I’ve seen it on church steeples and on church stages;
I’ve seen it outside churches draped in purple or white or black.
I’ve seen it illuminated in majestic cathedrals around the world.
I’ve worn it on a chain around my neck.
But never has the impact been more powerful than seeing it in a shopping cart,
waiting to be put out of sight for another year.
3 comments:
What a good poem! I don't remember if it was in the book you gave us. I like her poetry a lot. Thanks, Mom for the reminder to keep the cross in sight, all year long.
A meaningful poem. How easy it is to toss aside the meaning of our very lives as Christians. The image of a shopping cart brings it home. Thank you for the reminder of this and the goad to pick up my own cross daily and follow Christ.
I don't think this is a published poem - she just recently sent it to me, and not in poem form, I did the "forming." It was actually just a little article she wrote, but very poetic, huh? She's a very gifted writer.
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