By JMathis
On Friday night, I went to a concert where I was blown away by the unbelievably talented Michelle Touchstone. Michelle is an artistic genius when it comes to songwriting, and her voice is just brimming with lush beauty, depth and richness. Musically speaking, her songs are complex and nuanced, and she also manages to leave her audience with a message that is soulful, powerful and most of all, authentic.
One of the things she mentioned that stayed with me throughout the weekend, was the difficulty in singing and sharing about The Cross. Many times in modern Christianity, we want to focus on a hip, sanitized, more abstract version of Jesus: His love, His compassion, His ability to transform lives.
While all of this is very, very real when describing Jesus, we tend to gloss over the fact that these attributes of His are only meaningful in light of the ultimate sacrifice He made on The Cross.
On The Cross:
He died an ugly, gruesome, unspeakable death so that you and I could live: live with hope, live in victory, live in peace, live in joy.
He was marred beyond recognition and beaten to a pulp so that you and I could be free of pain, guilt and anxiety.
He suffered massive internal and external bleeding so that you and I could experience physical and emotional healing from the blood that kept pouring out of His bruised and battered body.
On The Cross, He experienced the kind of unfathomable brutality that is every mother’s worst nightmare for her child.
Yet, He did this for us. For our children. He did this so that you and I would have a future that transcended beyond the ugliness and hatred of this unforgiving, ruthless world.
When was the last time you reflected upon The Cross?
When was the last time you shared with someone about The Cross?
Lest we forget, The Cross is why we follow Him. The Cross is what gives us the power to trade in our sin-soaked past for a life overflowing with love, compassion and transformation.
Being honest with yourself about your past means nailing your shame on The Cross.
Being honest with others about your past means sharing what He did with that shame on The Cross.
True authenticity is about being honest. Honest about The Cross: what it has done for you and where it is taking you.
Wasn’t His death worth the sacrifice?
Isn’t He worth sharing?
Are you willing to be honest about The Cross today?
FemmeFuel 
Thank you for posting this beautiful truth. I really like what you wrote about being authentic. I´m really enjoying this new idea you share about shame being nailed to the cross. I had reservations about how much to share in a woman’s group. I admit I still do, but realizing the honesty and vulnerability of Jesus on the cross has given me inspiration throughout to share the ugly, yet beautiful truth. Jesus knew what we would struggle, and yes- even FAIL.
He also promised us victory through him. This is where it gets foggy at times. Do we trust him to do the work or do we keep doing it ourselves? He gladly bears our guilt and shame, so when we share the cross and our struggles it opens up a whole new perspective, suddenly it stops being about me, and yet is.
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