Dear Lord Jesus Christ,
You love me. You became flesh and gave Your life for me, so that I could be born again as a child of God. I thank You! From the moment I was born, You have been my Lord, the Lord of my life, watching over my growth. I came to know You as a youth; through growing up, I have witnessed who You are; and through witnessing You, I have come to feel even more deeply that everything You do is to save the people whom God created in His own image and likeness.
When You, the Son of Man, prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, Your soul was exceedingly sorrowful, even to death, and Your sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood. Some people may say You hesitated, unwilling to accept the ultimate cup of suffering. But I never see that You, as the Son of Man, ever refused the bitter cup. When You were reviled, You did not revile in return; when You were struck, You did not strike back; like a lamb silent before its shearers. Some may see Your sorrow as fear of death, but they may overlook that You grieved for those of little faith or for the unbelievers, and for the disciples who were not watchful at Your side—at the last supper, they were still arguing over who among them was the greatest; and when You prayed earnestly in Gethsemane, they were all sleeping.
Lord, You never hesitated. You came into the world to glorify God the Father, and to be glorified by Him. The Son of Man said, “The hour has come; glorify Me, Father, that I may share Your glory.” That is, the glory that Christ, the Son of God, had with Father before the world existed. From this I see that from beginning to end, Christ was willing in spirit, and the weakness of the flesh of Jesus the Son of Man was also Christ’s willingness to experience human frailty—so that the Father might pour out even greater grace, enabling the disciples to do greater works.
Now, though You are seated on high in the heavens, You have not abandoned us. Instead, You are even more compassionate towards our weakness, making us witness Your grace is perfect in our weakness. Lord, the path You walked, we too must walk, and as You commanded, take up our own cross and follow You. For what You accomplished on the cross glorified God the Father, and the Father also glorified You.
May we no longer grieve the Lord, but take up our own cross and follow You. May we be illuminated by the glory of Your cross and torch, walk forward in that light, pressing on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus takes hold of us.
In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, Amen!
en yan hua fang 