Take Up Your Cross

I’ve wondered what it means to say, “Take up your cross;” whether it means doing something similar to what Jesus did when He carried His cross to Calvary, or if there’s another meaning. Being forced to carry it, He suffered beyond comprehension. He had already endured a cruel beating. Now the heavy timber lay upon his injured body and it was almost impossible to carry it all the way to Golgotha. Simon of Cyrene helped Him. Being crucified was a horrific torture. Scripture alludes to carrying one’s cross as somewhat comparable to Jesus having had to bear His to Calvary. Whatever it means, it is not something to be done easily.


Mark 8:34 tells us that Jesus said, “ Whosoever will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” Consequently, asking us to follow Him would mean we are not be indulgent upon our own comforts, but to help others first and that to take up one’s cross is to lead a life that denies self-indulgence. He cared more for everyone else in the world than for Himself, and that’s why He took our sins upon Himself. He received our punishment so we could be forgiven.


Again, in Matthew 10:38, Jesus advised us to take up our cross and follow Him. Those who would follow Him must inspect their crosses and take them up. In so doing, an individual must follow Christ’s example and “bear his own cross” as He carried His. All of us will surely meet with “crosses,” of one kind or another, and we are to be encouraged to know that Christ bore His own cross. In bearing "crosses," or “hardships,” we follow Christ who showed us the way. If we follow Him faithfully, He will lead us through sufferings just as He was able to go through suffering Himself, to His glory. Similarly, it will be to our own glory to trust in Christ to carry us through times of hardship. He will not only give us the ability but the reward of eternal life for having put our trust in Him.


From Luke 9:23, we must become accustomed to self-denial and be patient, not indulging in comfort and appetite because that will make it more difficult to bear toil and fatigue. We frequently meet with crosses in the line of duty. When they are laid before us, we must take them up and carry them, as did Christ, making the best of the situation. An example is a friend of ours, who lovingly cares for his dear wife who has cancer in her bones, and we have another friend who, for years, devoted his attention to the needs of his wife who was invalided by multiple sclerosis. Friends of ours have a son with Down’s syndrome. From the love and care his parents have given him over the years he has grown up with such self-confidence that he can hold a job in a grocery store, stocking shelves. These are examples of the crosses people have to bear and they have done it with the strength with which God has enabled them.


Taking up one’s cross can also mean the extent to which we will support our faith in Jesus in times when others are denouncing and berating Him. It means professing the reason why our standards are high and that we will not allow ourselves to degrade them so we will fit in with sinful society.

It Takes Practice

It takes practice to be proficient at anything. Playing the pipes well requires many hours, all with an effort to have accomplished something in every session.

A concert pianist told about a member of his audience who came to him after his recital, saying, “I wish I could play like that!” The artist’s response was, “No, I’m sure you really don’t wish that, for if you did, you would be able to play as well as I.” The person was embarrassed, for he realized that by having given into so many distractions in his life, he had not allowed himself time to practice.

Another musician had a banner hanging on his wall near the piano which read, “Some say, “I’d love to be able to play well, but as for me, I just get up early and practice.” Obviously, that was a person motivated to practice regularly. In fact he was passionate, having his objective to be an excellent pianist, motivated to persevere through difficult passages, repeating the drill until what had been difficult at first, eventually became easy and enjoyable.

The principle of practice can be applied to artistry just as well. For 10 years, Leonardo da Vinci practiced drawing various parts of the anatomy in different positions. When he was satisfied, he began to paint pictures like photographs. Whether one is an artist, an athlete, musician, or surgeon, greatness will come only with diligent study and practice.

Practice is like a rehearsal. A few simple songs to begin loosens the fingers of the piper or the vocal chords of a singer, then the way to go is to play a few familiar pieces, review the last practice to include some exercises, and play a couple of new selections with concentration. Afterwards, one will make a definite plan for review in the next practice. This is the method for keeping one’s practice time organized and efficient. The main endeavor is to set a definite time aside for practice. In a university Psychology class, we were taught that the plan for study is to have a time, place and attitude. It is the pathway to success.

With Aspiring Hymns, a music book for The Church Piper, on which I’ve been working, my efforts have been to encourage pipers to develop their techniques of playing, along with characteristics of Christ that will be a tribute to our Lord. One way to do this is to attend church regularly, listen to the messages delivered by the minister and understand their intent, to sing with the congregation and learn the words to those songs. Then diligent practice on the pipes will prepare them for the opportunity when it arises, to lead the congregation in praise with call to worship on the pipes. The invitation should be accepted graciously, as a deep honor. When a well-practiced piper begins to know God better, and benefits from the lessons taught at church on Sunday, he or she will be ready to lead the congregation in worship when invited.