Station III

Station III:  Jesus falls for the first time

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you:
Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Reading:

Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped; but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, and was born in human likeness. And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him, and bestowed on him the name which is above every name.

Surely he has borne our griefs:
And carried all our sorrows.

Reflection: Jesus who is with us in our suffering

This has been a year that turned the world upside down. Could we even have imagined all that we would walk through this year, in our personal lives or as a parish community? And yet, we have never been left alone. Jesus has been with us, in our struggles and in our suffering. Imagine the ways in which that divine presence has broken through for you this past year: in relationships, in worship, at home or at work, and in prayer. What suffering have you witnessed? What burdens have you carried? What have you brought to Jesus? In what ways is Jesus carrying those burdens for us, even now? In what ways are they transformed by this divine love and grace?

Closing Prayer:

O God, you know us to be set in the midst of so many and great dangers, that by reason of the frailty of our nature we cannot always stand upright: grant us such strength and protection as may support us in all dangers, and carry us through all temptations; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Direct Link to Station IV