Deep in his heart, Jesus has felt the days and now the hours counting down. What will he do with these last precious moments before his arrest? After he finishes his final supper, he leaves his work behind. He has taught what he could teach, healed what he could heal. He goes to the Garden of Gethsemane to find a moment of quiet to be with God.
As the Christ, the Son of God, Jesus feels God’s will within him pulling him towards this final showdown with the powers of hatred and death. And yet he is a human being, as fragile and fearful as any other. There, in the garden, he shares his whole self with God. He is not afraid to ask that he be released from the burden of his mission. Let this cup pass from me, he pleads. Do not ask me to drink this bitterness. Jesus does not receive what he asks for. But, in this moment of honest communion with God, he does find peace. Something shifts inside him, and he finds that he is able to face the challenges before him. With utter acceptance, he tells God, “Let your will be done.” Prayer works, though rarely in the way we wish it would. Prayer does not shield us from heartache or make all our troubles go away. But it works. It brings us closer to God, and it helps us to trust that God will give us the strength we need to face whatever may come.
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