I was struck with how easily I have read over this chapter at times.  Today, I found myself coming back to this account of Jesus’ trials and execution.  As I read these words today, for some reason, they didn’t seem as familiar.  The heaviness of this chapter seemed to weigh on me as I meditated on what Jesus went through in his last hours.  I am experiencing so many emotions as a result of this chapter today.  I feel guilty for how often I have read through this account with relative ease.  I am saddened by the suffering of an innocent man.  I am awed by the love that Jesus demonstrates through his willingness to suffer.  I am angered by different people in the account.  All day this chapter has been at the forefront of my thinking…it keeps calling me back to read again…and I am thankful.

I am thankful for these words that seem, more than ever, to be living words.  Words that not only detail the account of my Savior’s suffering, but cut to my heart and seem to have a life all their own as they continue to teach, minister to and inspire me!

I pray that as you read these words, may you experiece their weight and their life.