Passage of the Day:
Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” 39 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” 40 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. 41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak,” Matthew 26:36-42.
Reflection:
A former high school coach once told me, “You’ll know who your true friends are when you experience hardships and trials in life.” Jesus had spent 3 years of his life disciplining, investing and teaching 12 men. Yet, in his greatest time of need, none of them could stay up late at night to pray for Him for an hour. Jesus points to the struggle that exists in remaining faithful, “the Spirit of God is willing, but human bodies are weak.”
Prayerful Action:
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God,” Mark 10:27.
Preparing Your Fields to Bear Spiritual Fruit:
The human mind is capable of doing great things. Yet, when doubt enters the minds of Christians in the form of negative thoughts, certain things seem impossible. As a former Bible teacher, I would often go back to the Garden of Eden. Eve knew the only rule God established, the one boundary that was off limits. Nonetheless, the moment she opened her mind to the possibility that God was somehow holding her back, Genesis 3:4-6, faithful was pushed aside for a Turkish delight. The only way to continually to bear spiritual fruit in a fallen world is to lean on the strength of Jesus during your weak moments in life, Philippians 4:13.
Song of the Day:
My father and father-in-law lived in a period of life in America where corporations valued their employees, working their entire career with the same company. Unfortunately, as companies focus their attention on cutting costs and pleasing stockholders, faithfulness is rarely seen today. As you wrestle to live in, but not of the world, trust in Jesus to maintain faithfulness in a fallen world.
by Jay Mankus
ExpressYourself4Him 