All of us have deep concerns and troubled anxious thoughts that others do not know or understand. Sometimes people know some of what we are enduring, but not the full extent. It is a natural desire to want to have support when we are facing and living with overwhelming circumstances. People who would not normally reach out to request others to pray for them, will do so when they are feeling really desperate. As we will soon approach the reminder of the events of Good Friday and Jesus facing the cross for us, we encounter Jesus with His disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane. When Jesus was facing the most horrifying moments of His life, He said to three of His disciples Peter, James, and John, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” (Matthew 26:38) Jesus longed for those closest to Him to watch and pray with Him, as He wrestled with what was going to happen. It is a beautiful gift that we can give to people to watch and pray with them when they are facing their darkest moments. It is a beautiful gift to receive when any one of us are facing our darkest moments to know that there are those who are watching and praying with us. In the case of Jesus’ disciples, they kept falling asleep. Jesus engaged in earnest prayer with His Father in heaven which concluded with these words, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may Your will be done.” (Matthew 26:42) We can look to God to enable us to faithfully watch and pray when others are looking to us for that accompaniment. Knowing that someone is watching and praying can provide the strength and courage that each of us needs. It is not necessary to know all the details of another’s experience. We can pray for each other well as we sensitively ask God to take care of whatever those for whom we pray are being overwhelmed by. This will be our approach in prayer for our WEDNESDAY PRAYER TOGETHER tomorrow April 6th at 1 pm.
Thanking God for the opportunities that He gives us to watch and pray for each other, Pastor Lola
Our LORD and our God we come in our thoughts with Jesus Your Son to the Garden of Gethsemane. We hear Him urging those with Him to keep watch and to pray with Him in His agony. We recognize His longing to have the prayerful commitment of His friends as He struggled with what was before Him. We have known the strength of others watching and praying with us and for us when we have been overwhelmed by life. Thank You for this gift that can be both given and received. Knowing what it has meant to us to be assured of the prayers of others, we want to be dependable in prayer for those who now need it. Please give us sensitivity for those who most need our prayers. Sometimes we notice or suspect that someone is struggling and we thank you that You know what we do not. We are trusting You that as we pray that You will respond and lift up and sustain as needed. Even when others do not know that we are remembering them in prayer, thank You that we can access Your divine power for them as we hold them in prayer. We cannot imagine the anguish of those currently living life in The Ukraine. Their need for faithful watching and praying is extreme. We willingly step into that place now and bring them to You in our prayers. Please remind them that they are not alone and that You stand with them. Please also allow them to know that people around the world are watching and praying with them. We think now of recent conversations we have had where it has become apparent that people are in need of prayer. Please fortify faith for those who wonder about giving up. Please surround with love for those who feel forgotten and disregarded. Please bring the hope of a new day for those who aren’t sure they can face tomorrow. Continue to inspire us to choose kindness and respect as we are navigating the ongoing challenges of not being completely clear of COVID. And God when our own cares weigh heavily and we find it so hard to stay awake and focused in our watching and praying for others, please provide the energy and the determination that can come form Your Spirit at work in us. Thank You Jesus that You were willing to surrender to the will of God the Father. We pray that our watching and praying will result in us welcoming and affirming Your will in every area of our lives and the lives of those for whom we pray. We place all of this before You, in Jesus’ Name. AMEN.