Keep Watch With Me

Matthew 26:38  Then he said to them ‘My soul is overwhelmed to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.’

    I have often marveled at how Jesus is portrayed in the Garden of Gethsemane in the movie “The Passion of the Christ”.  John Caviezel is hands down one of the finest actors to ever portray Christ in that dramatic role.  What I find compelling in this movie scene is the raw emotion displayed.  The words of Matthew 26 are no longer left to my imagination. Rather, they are graphically displayed in a manner I could scarcely have imagined.  All the emotion, the frailties each of us knows so very well in ourselves is right there in front of us.  To see what is meant by the words ‘My soul is overwhelmed to the point of death” is humbling and more than a little frightening.  Each and every time I watch the movie “The Passion” I struggle with this scene.  It’s a scene that reaches deep into me for it provides a glimpse of the struggle Jesus faced at that moment in His life on earth and ministry.  The moment is a very teachable moment Jesus shares with His disciples.  Peter, James and John were the same disciples he chose to share The Transfiguration with.  His closest friends were gathered around Him.  These three disciples had been with Jesus in times of good. And now He wanted them by His side when He was struggling the most.

    Fear of the unknown, of what comes next is a very strong.  And all the more so for those facing the end of their life.  The compelling nature of Matthew 26:38 brings to mind the pleadings of the Author of Psalm 69 verses 1&2. Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck, I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me.  These two references point all of us to our one great hope when our situation seems hopeless. Our Father in Heaven is there by our side always.  He is our hope, our rock, our stronghold against the storms of life.  He is waiting there with open arms for us, when our time here has come to an end.  I have been blessed with having been near to friends who have been strong believers at the end of their time on earth. Each has passed on with dignity, hope, and a blessed assurance that in the end, they have nothing at all to fear.  And this condition of “fearlessness” exists because Jesus went before us.  He suffered the cross for our sake so that we would not live with the overwhelming fear of death. Our souls can be at peace and not be overwhelmed.  The flood waters will not overwhelm us and neither will they sweep us away.

    Prayer: Lord and Giver of Life we who are easily frightened seek You in earnest when we are troubled. Often we are afraid of what we should not be afraid of.  We too often forget the words of encouragement and hope that are salted through out Scriptures. We are weak. Help us to be strong Father.  Give us the strength and the faith to stand firm against our fears.  Help us to overcome our fears.  We ask this in the name of Your Son Jesus Christ, who has gone before us and stands waiting for us to come home, Amen.

Sorrowful and Troubled

Matthew 26:36-37 The Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, ‘Sit here while I go over there and pray.’  He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled.

    Do you have a couple of friends that you can turn to when you are troubled?  The friends I am referring to are what would be called close friends. They are people you have laughed with, frequently share time with, and possibly shared tears with over difficult times in your lives.  They are the kind of friends that accept you for who you are, and you accept for who they are.  How you came to be friends can be of little consequence.  There are two important aspects in this kind of friendship.

1.)  You are there for each other when times are good, and when times are bad.  The matter of being available is what counts.  In our modern world of cellular, text messaging, and social media the avenues for connection have expanded drastically from anything in the past.  Knowing that there is someone out there to talk with, to reach out to is incredibly important. And for the person that is reached out to, your role is to put a face on the love of Christ.  To listen, to talk, to care, and to pray with.  And most importantly to know that someone is there to not just pray with you, but to pray for you is so indescribably comforting.  A little piece of the peace of God that surpasses all understanding flows from that simple act of praying for a close friend.  The grace of God flows abundantly in prayer.

2.)  A close friend also holds us accountable.  This can be difficult at times for the friend to do. But having someone who is willing to speak openly, honestly, and objectively is another part what a close friend can do.  It is very easy, and tempting to throw a pity party when we are suffering.  The close friend is one who will call us on things we need to be called on. They will help us to see with our own eyes what fault we have, or what role we played in our current situation.  This is truly an act of love and done with trust and without malice.  We may not be able to see the fault in ourselves and a close friend will step up in love to help.

    Jesus takes Peter, James and John with him because he needs the accountability and the prayer aspects of these, his closest friends.  He asks this of these three men during a time when he is troubled as at no other time in his life.  He knows his limitations, and he knows that without their help and support he may weaken.  His time of testing is upon him and he needs to prepare for what He knows is ahead.  He needs His closest friends.  Dear friends of the Risen Savior, do you have close friends and are you a close friend someone can call upon in their time of sorrow and trouble?

    Prayer:  Almighty God, we are placed on this earth with the knowledge that we are not alone. You are with us always. And we also know that You have given us close friends we can reach out to when we are struggling. Help us to reach out to You through faith. And help us to be worthy of the trust placed in us when others reach out in need. We ask this in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen

In You I Trust

Psalms 25:1-2 To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul; in you I trust, O my God. Do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me.

This passage seems like a quintessential prayer appealing directly to our human nature. It asks God to let us reign supreme in our dealings with our enemies and to allow us our dignity. Thankfully, the first part balances this perspective out.

What’s interesting in this passage is how the passage first starts by surrendering the soul to the Lord. It is just as we all should do. When we place our soul in the hands of the Lord, we place him in the driver seat of our life, now and forever. This should also remind us of how short-lived our life here on earth really it. It compares to a drop in the bucket of time. And our long-term focus should not be on where we are. Rather, our focus needs to be on where we are ultimately going. With that thought in mind we need remember to look carefully at what we desire in our lives. We should seek to find balance with what God would have us do.

The final part of the passage asking to not be put to shame would seem to fly in the face of how the life of Jesus Christ played out. The passage should also serve as a reminder that pride is strong and when shamed we are often tempted to lose our trust in God. This temptation certainly happened in the life of Christ. He was humbled in coming down from heaven. He lived among us and suffered the humiliation of the cross so that we would be reconciled to our Father in Heaven. Yet, in the end his short-lived humiliation was just that - It was short lived. He was raised from the dead. He walked among us once again, and then he ascended into heaven in glory. We, who tend to embrace a short-term out look need to pause and look at the long term. Our immediate situation has a purpose. Determining through prayer what the purpose is should be a focus for all of us. For if we truly lift up our souls and trust in the Lord, we have all the assurance we really need. There will be a purpose in our lives. We will learn what we must learn when we need to learn it. We will be able to share those valuable lessons with others. It is tough in the midst of a crisis, to accept it is for our own good. Really it really boils down to one thing. We either trust God, or we don't. There's no middle ground we can carve out that says we trust God on a limited basis. We either do so completely, or not. My prayer for all of us is to hang on to Psalm 25 :1. "To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul; in you I trust, O my God."

PRAYER: Almighty God, we lift up our souls to You. We place our trust in You, and You alone. Your own Son died on the cross for our sins that we would be once again reconciled to You. This important lesson needs to ring clear in our lives. Just as Jesus placed his trust in You, help us through the Holy Spirit to have that same faith. This we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with the Father and the Spirit. One God, now and forever. Amen.