Caring for the Caregiver
A note of hope, love and inspiration
to remind you that the Lord cares for you.
May the grace and peace of the Lord be with you in abundance,
–deb and kelly
The Way of the Cross for Caregivers
The rich tradition of the Stations of the Cross allows us to put ourselves into the story as we too journey to Calvary. See how Lent becomes more significant as the focus is on the Cross and the depth of the Lord’s loving response to you, and to today’s world.
Our Lord understands our struggles, and praying the Stations help us understand suffering from a new perspective. The reflections in our Way of the Cross for are written especially for the ill, elderly and the caregivers who love them. These prayerful Stations of the Cross encourage a deeper understanding of the caregiving journey in light of Christ’s journey to Calvary, and reminds us that we are not alone.
The First Station: Jesus is Condemned to Death
Reflection:
Abandoned. Scourged. Condemned. Alone. In my caregiving, I too have had dark hours. As I begin praying these Stations, Lord, I see suffering, an abandonment of self to a greater purpose. Thank you for showing me what self-giving love looks like so I too can continue in my caregiving.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Second Station: Jesus Carries His Cross
Reflection:
With your help, I too Lord accept my cross. Sometimes it is light, other times a heavy burden. But with you by my side, I do not walk with my cross alone.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Third Station: Jesus Falls for the First Time
Reflection:
The heavy wooden beam rests on your torn and bloodied shoulders. You faint and fall. I too, in my caregiving fail, and fall. I don’t pay attention. I allow worries, self-absorption, or mistrust to distract me. I look to you Lord and know that I too can get up and continue with renewed purpose.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Fourth Station: Jesus Meets His Mother
Reflection:
In meeting the gaze of your mother, joy and sorrow are intermingled. So too is my caregiving, the dichotomy of happiness and sorrow, struggle and peace, surrender and fear. In seeing your mother, I am reminded that the connection with the one we love gives solace and consolation.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Fifth Station: Simon of Cyrene Helps Jesus Carry His Cross
Reflection:
Weariness takes its toll. The Roman guards fear you will not make it to Calvary so enlist the help of Simon. There are times in my caregiving when total strangers have assisted me too. I am grateful for the friends and family who support me. Allow others to continue to offer assistance and remind me of your loving presence.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Sixth Station: Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus
Reflection:
How simple and tender this gesture is, wiping the sweat and blood from your beloved face. Seeing a need, Veronica responded. Love makes a difference.
Let all my gestures communicate tenderness and compassion. Small gestures can convey great love.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Seventh Station: Jesus Falls for the Second Time
Reflection:
Jesus, you stumble and fall a second time. As I juggle the varied demands of caregiving with my job, or family or my own health and well-being, I am reminded that each fall is an opportunity to start anew. I ask for the grace to begin fresh, with renewed vigor, optimism, and hope.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Eight Station: Jesus meets the Women of Jerusalem
Reflection:
“Weep not for me but for yourselves,” you tell the women bystanders. The way of the cross is not easy, and, as we continue in our vocation as caregiver, we too may weep. The world may tell us to relinquish our responsibility, to focus more on self than other, but we know that our faithfulness and sacrifice are pleasing to you.
We offer and unite our distress with yours.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Ninth Station: Jesus Falls for the Third Time
Reflection:
The expectation is too much, and your tired body will not respond, causing you to stumble and fall, again. But you know that your road does not end here but must continue. I know too that I must go on, and I hold onto your promises. Please, Lord, continue to sanctify and make holy my caregiving journey.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Tenth Station: Jesus is Stripped of His Garments
Reflection:
When it would seem there is nothing left to give, you are stripped of your clothes. There are times in my caregiving when I feel I have nothing left, or that things surely cannot get any worse, but they do. I search for meaning in the chaotic life of a caregiver. Your love shows me that the life of every person, at every stage, has meaning, dignity and purpose.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Eleventh Station: Jesus is Nailed to the Cross
Reflection:
The hammer falls, nailing you to the cross. Help me in my caregiving to look with new eyes on the hurt and pain around me. Help me to not flinch or shy away from what you call me to do; help me to be faithful to you. Your cross is a symbol of suffering, but one your passion transforms it to a symbol of redemption.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Twelfth Station: Jesus Dies on the Cross
Reflection:
It is finished. The suffering is over. Sometimes, if we’re being honest, we long for our caregiving to be over, the suffering of our loved one ended, but then we feel guilty or ashamed for such thoughts. Our hope is in the Resurrection. In You.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Thirteenth Station: Jesus is taken Down from the Cross
Reflection:
The final preparations for burial must begin, but for a moment your body rests in the arms of your mother. In caregiving, it sometimes seems dark, lonely, and deserted. Give me the courage to know you have not abandoned me. Renew my fortitude, strengthen my resolve, soften my heart. Help me to love as you love.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Fourteenth Station: Jesus is Laid in the Tomb
Reflection:
In your death you show us that nothing is too much for God. Nothing is beyond redemption. Help me to give abundantly, knowing that you will refill, refresh and strengthen me. Help me to believe in the empty tomb; let my caregiving then be a joyful witness to a world that is hurting and afraid.
Rest in silence with the Lord.
The Way to Calvary. Praying the Stations of the Cross is a powerful way to contemplate, and enter into, the mystery of Jesus’ gift of himself to us.
Praying the Stations of the Cross helps inspire deep prayer, and allow us to engage our imagination, placing ourselves there, in each scene experiencing everything that is happening, contemplating what each person in the scene is thinking, feeling, hoping, and fearing. Through the Stations of the Cross we can further experience the love of Jesus with gratitude and humility. Deep gratitude leads to real generosity and a desire to love others in return. Quite simply, the tradition of the Stations of the Cross can strengthen your faith as the events of Christ’s Passion become more vivid, taking root in our hearts.
Looking For More? We invite you to prayerfully enter into Christ’s journey to Calvary, with the images, reflections and prayers for you, a caregivers.