Station 9: Jesus falls the third time.
Completely drained of strength
I lie, collapsed upon the cobblestones.
My body cannot move.
No blows, no kicks, can rouse it.
And yet, my will is mine.
And so is yours.
Know this, my other self,
Your body may be broken,
but no force on earth and none in hell
can take away your will.
Your will is yours.
I reply.
My Lord,
I see you take a moment’s rest
then rise and stagger on.
So I can do—
because my will is mine.
When all my strength is gone
and guilt and self-reproach
press me to earth and seem to hold me fast,
protect me from the sin of Judas—
save me from despair!
Lord, never let me feel
That any sin of mine
Is greater than your love.
No matter what my past has been
I can begin anew.
Clarence Enzler
Everyone’s Way of the Cross
Way of the Cross
Station 1: Jesus is condemned to die.
Jesus, as you stand bloodied and bruised before your executioner, Pilate, how did you feel when he...
Station 2: Jesus takes up His cross.
After the Roman soldiers flogged Jesus, taunted him, slapped Him and humiliated Him, they brought...
Station 3: Jesus falls for the first time.
I believe that it is on the way to the cross that we see most clearly Jesus’ human weakness. We...
Station 4: Jesus meets His mother.
As I contemplate the 4th station of The Way of the Cross, where Jesus meets His mother, it makes...
Station 5: Simon helps Jesus.
After Jesus’ wrenching encounter with His mother, he stumbles on in the walk to his crucifixion....
Station 6: Veronica helps Jesus.
The Via Dolorosa which Christ walked on the way to His crucifixion was a main street through...
Station 7: Jesus falls again.
In the Way of the Cross, Jesus falls three times. These falls have come to remind me of God’s plan...
Station 8: Jesus consoles the women.
The Via Dolorosa was about 600 meters long- only a little more than a third of a mile. But when...
Station 10: Jesus is stripped.
I remember reading a book once where the main character was a young black women who lived in the...
Station 11: Jesus is crucified.
Have you ever wondered why God allows suffering? As the last few grains of sand in the hourglass...
Station 12: Jesus dies.
Just before He died, Jesus uttered two revealing statements. The first is recorded in the Gospel...
Station 13: Jesus is taken down from the cross.
Jesus called out, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed...
Station 14: Jesus is buried.
On our walk this Lent we have followed Jesus from Pilate’s Palace in Jerusalem to the cross on...