Before my friend and mentor Paul died, I spent a few minutes in his darkened hospital room with other friends and family members. We all were preoccupied in our goodbyes and impending loss, so we barely noticed Paul's physician when he entered the crowded room, picked up Paul's chart, and squinted at it. Paul noticed and said to his son, "Mark, turn up the light so he [the doctor] can see." It wasn't surprising that Paul would address another's need with a few of the last words he had left in life, a life of teaching and sharing God's love.

The reach and impact of Jesus' sacrifice are great. When Jesus died, the earth shook and the temple veil ripped (see Matthew 27:51)—signs that really big things were happening.

Jesus' mother, Mary, and his beloved disciple John, both witnesses at his death, experienced the cross's impact personally. Jesus' suffering did not dim his awareness of the sorrow and loss of these two people in the crowd, nor did the immense reach of Jesus' mission prevent him from touching the lives of these two dear persons with his love.

The impact of the cross reaches all around the world, and backward and forward through all time. Such love is larger than anything in the universe, but it's not too great to touch someone in the crowd, like you or me.