Following Jesus - Part 4: Take Up Your Cross
Mar 23, 2025 • Fr Elijah Estafanous
In this stirring fourth message of the Following Jesus series, Fr. Elijah dives deep into what it truly means to “take up your cross.” This isn't just about enduring hardship—it's about embracing suffering with Christ, turning pain into prayer, and using our wounds to bring healing to others.
Are you tired, anxious, or overwhelmed? Do you feel like the burden you're carrying is just too much? In this message, you’ll hear:
🔹 How Jesus meets us in our suffering—not just to sympathize, but to carry it with us
🔹 Why pain is real, but suffering can be optional when it’s united to Christ
🔹 The power of the Cross in the life of Abouna Bishoy Kamel, a modern-day saint who loved to the end
🔹 How your own thorn, trial, or heartbreak can become someone else’s healing
🔹 Practical steps to embrace your cross and live a life of compassion and purpose
🕊 “Christ didn’t suffer so we wouldn’t suffer—He suffered so we’d never suffer alone.”
Let this message be your encouragement to stop kicking against the pain and start using it as a catalyst for transformation. Because when we carry the cross with Christ, we are never crushed by it. We are moved by it—into love, into purpose, into power.
Watch now. Reflect deeply. And consider this question:
“How can I unite my suffering with Christ this week?”
Are you tired, anxious, or overwhelmed? Do you feel like the burden you're carrying is just too much? In this message, you’ll hear:
🔹 How Jesus meets us in our suffering—not just to sympathize, but to carry it with us
🔹 Why pain is real, but suffering can be optional when it’s united to Christ
🔹 The power of the Cross in the life of Abouna Bishoy Kamel, a modern-day saint who loved to the end
🔹 How your own thorn, trial, or heartbreak can become someone else’s healing
🔹 Practical steps to embrace your cross and live a life of compassion and purpose
🕊 “Christ didn’t suffer so we wouldn’t suffer—He suffered so we’d never suffer alone.”
Let this message be your encouragement to stop kicking against the pain and start using it as a catalyst for transformation. Because when we carry the cross with Christ, we are never crushed by it. We are moved by it—into love, into purpose, into power.
Watch now. Reflect deeply. And consider this question:
“How can I unite my suffering with Christ this week?”