Today’s Gospel presents us with two very original thoughts. They both come from Jesus himself. “You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.” And the second: “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me.” This second original thought has a corollary: “Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”

Which political leader would get any votes running on that platform? Which business leader would be able to woo investors by proposing that they would have to suffer if they wanted to prosper?

Nevertheless, Jesus made those statements, and we, his disciples, are supposed to see as does God and take up our cross.

Seeing the world differently means looking at life the way God does and not the way we do. What’s the difference? See the world the way God does, not the way TV and radio talking heads do. See human weakness as God does, not as gossips do. Those are just a few ways.

Here’s an appropriate example as we come to the end of summer and think about the opening of school. Why did God make you? God made me to know, love and serve him in this world and to be happy with him forever in heaven. That’s God’s answer to the question. Here’s man’s answer. You are here (notice the absence of God) to be successful in this world, to get a good job, to make lots of money, to retire happily and perhaps go to eternal life if it exists. Big difference. God created us to be human beings, not human doings. Yes, our primary reason for existence is to be a child of God both now and into eternity.

We exist primarily to be people and secondarily to have jobs, activities, careers. Our greatest possession is ourselves. That’s not selfish. That’s realistic. If we do not have ourselves, then we have nothing to give to others. Let’s make the example even more concrete. As we begin the school year, we should remember that the goal of education is primarily to educate, to form a person, not create a functionary. We are to be human beings, persons, not human doings. We should think and do as God does.

Then, there is that uncomfortable “cross” thing that Jesus brings up. Jesus does not say, “Look at the crosses of life and try to avoid them or get someone to fix them for you.” He says to take them up. We spend so much time trying to avoid the crosses of life rather than just taking them up, with Jesus at our side, and facing them. Here’s a tangible example, especially for parents and grandparents. Your middle names are not “fix it.” You can’t spend your lives fixing the crosses your children must face, no matter how old those children are. Help your children carry the cross; make them understand that the cross has a value and is part of life. Teach our young to conquer the bumps – the crosses – of life not to skirt them.

The crosses we face may not replicate the cross of Jesus. Our crosses have different names, names like pandemic, racism, looting, pillaging, hurricanes, politics, crumbling family life, cancel culture, loss of faith in a loving God and who knows what else.

Jesus does not say take up your cross all by yourself. He says, “follow me.” We are not alone in taking up our crosses as did Jesus. Remember that Jesus’ victory over death came through the cross, taking up the cross, not by avoiding the cross.

With our beautiful summer ending, we now face the ordinariness of life, even though our lives are not always ordinary. Face that life as Jesus taught us: see the world as God sees it and take up the crosses as did Jesus.