Turn Me Upside Down Lord

READING 2 Timothy 2:8, 11-13

Remember that Jesus Christ, a descendant of David,
was raised from the dead. You can depend on this:
If we have died with him
we shall also live with him;
If we hold out to the end
we shall also reign with him.
But if we deny him he will deny us. If we are unfaithful
he will still remain faithful, for he cannot deny himself.

Today, as I prepare to preach for the families at the family mass, I can see in the Sunday readings and in this morning's reading, that we must lose ourselves to gain Christ. For one to die with Christ, one's life must change once Jesus has entered. But like that day in the temple, the danger is there of worrying about me, my life, my needs, my desires. The people in the synagogue heard about healings and miracles and wanted to see these in their own town for their own people. They became enraged that they had not received their fair share. 

  If we deny Jesus, we deny that Jesus died to give us life. If we do not allow Jesus to stay in our lives, we become unchanged and similar to the Pharisees, talking a good game but living another. Jesus made the cross, a sign of death and oppression used by the Romans, something different. Jesus turned it upside down to become a symbol of life and salvation for us. We must strive to turn our lives upside down as well, and turn the me belief into the we belief. To turn our concerns away from our needs and wants and comforts in to sharing God's love with others.