[Mark 14:32-42 KJV] “And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane: and he saith to his disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray. And he taketh with him Peter and James and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy; and saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch.“
“And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt. And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour?“
“Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. And again he went away, and prayed, and spake the same words. And when he returned, he found them asleep again, (for their eyes were heavy,) neither wist they what to answer him.“
“And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand.”
One thing is true; all days are not equal. Some days are evil and others are better; but you can build resilience in turbulent times. The only secret to building resilience in turbulent times is to pray.
As I read the Gethesamane experience of Our Lord Jesus, I have learnt a few lessons. I have learnt;
- Firstly that sometimes the deep sorrow that engulfs your soul is demonic and spiritual. The Lord became overwhelmed when He entered Gethesamane. His soul was crushed by a deep sorrow that came over Him. I don’t know how you feel but I know it is time to pray
- The second lesson I learnt was He did not seclude Himself, rather, He asked for the support of His disciples and comapnions in ministry. He asked them to come with Him to the place of prayer. Many of us do the opposite; when we feel overwhelmed, we withdraw instead of mobilising support.
- The third lesson I learnt was He confided in the three who were closest to Him. He told them what was going on in His spirit and soul. Do you feel depressed? Talk to me, I will listen.
- The fourth lesson I learnt was; though He spoke to people close to Him, He prayed himself too; because sometimes people we expect to be standing with us are themselves bulge down by some burdens. So Jesus actually prayed too. You must learn to pray on your own though you may have others pray for you. The disciples and the people He expected to watch with Him were themselves heavy under the burden.
Listen! Prayer is that master key to build resilience in turbulent times; let’s watch and pray!
I love you!
