“When they came to a place called The Skull, they nailed him to the cross. And the criminals were also crucified—one on his right and one on his left.”

Today is April 4th. It’s a day I always remember as it was the last day that I was employed directly by a company, reporting to a Board of Directors. It was a simple decision.  The company I was running was acquired and only one CEO was needed from then on out.  The acquirer remained.  The acquired didn’t. It was all good and the years since have been great.  I also note April 4th because it was the day that Martin Luther King, Jr. was murdered in 1968. I think of him on this day and was reminded in a sermon I was listening to that in his book :Strength to Love: he had a strong word for us about who shapes and who is shaped by culture.  He said we can either be the Nail who lets culture shape us, or we can be the Hammer who shapes the culture.  It’s a lesson for all of as we navigate these times where it seems Hammers are all around us.  Let’s not in our work, nor in our lives, be just a Nail.

This is Holy Week and as we intentionally move towards Easter, let’s remember that neither the hammer or the nails could defeat our Lord.  The nails of the cross were His sacrifice for us and should remind us that anything of the culture around us is so below the importance and significance of His Kingdom.  We are daily confronted with a culture that wants to move us away from Christ.  In this week, on this day, let’s let the nails of the cross bring us back to Him first, and always, in all that we do.

Reference: Luke 23:33 (New Living Translation)