The Blessing
The Journey To Resurrection, Part 2
As Jesus prepares to face his crucifixion, his mind is flooded with doubts. Yet, even in his darkest hour, Jesus prays. He's overcome with a seemingly unexplainable peace and shows us that if we’re going to endure times of testing, we need to pray honestly, persistently, and submissively.
“The blessing comes when in our fiercest trials, we rest in our Father’s loving arms.”
Scripture:
Luke 22:39-46
Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.” He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.
When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow. “Why are you sleeping?” he asked them. “Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.”
Highlights:
• If we’re going to endure times of testing, we need to pray honestly.
• Unaddressed pain makes us weary. And weariness eventually turns into bitterness.
• Being honest with God is more than telling him what we want. It’s being vulnerable with him.
• If we’re going to endure times of testing, we need to pray persistently.
• Prayer is not something we do simply in response to trials, rather how we respond to trials is birthed from a life of prayer.
• When we keep praying we’re saying that we know our Heavenly Father will answer us.
• If we’re going to endure times of testing, we need to pray submissively.
• “The basic purpose of prayer is not to bend God’s will to mine, but to mold my will into His.” - Tim Keller
• When we pray like Jesus, “you’re will be done,” it’s not meant to be formulaic, rather it’s acknowledging as we bring our requests to Him that we don’t know what His will is in that given situation.
• “God is not only the one in charge. God is also good. Everything He does is good.” - Dr. James Boice
• The blessing comes when in our fiercest trials, we rest in our Father’s loving arms.
