LET YOUR WILL BE DONE

Incarnation

After Jesus and the Twelve celebrated the Passover meal we call “The Last Supper,” Jesus took his disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. At Christmas we talk about “incarnation”-God coming to us in human form. Incarnation means Jesus was fully human and fully God. Mark’s account of Jesus prayers immediately before his arrest show us incarnation.

 Your Will, not Mine

The fully human Jesus’ heart was heavy. Three times he prayed to be spared the suffering of the cross. He knew what his enemies had planned, and he didn’t want to face the humiliation, pain, and death that lay ahead. But the fully God Jesus knew the path to the redemption of humanity lay through the cross. So he concluded his desperate prayers with, “But whatever happens, let Your will be done—not Mine.”

 Friends who Sleep

Instead of praying with Jesus, his disciples slept. They didn’t seem to understand the gravity of Jesus’ situation. Are we like the disciples? How often are we oblivious to the prayers of our family and friends? Sometimes prayer is solitary, but sometimes prayer should be in community. When Jesus needed the support of his friends the most, they were too tired to give it. May God grant us the awareness to support our friends in prayer when they need it.

 When God’s Answer is Silence

God answered Jesus’ prayers with silence, both in the garden and on the cross. Sometimes God answers our desperate prayers with silence. A distraught mother prays for a sick child to be healed, but the child dies. An out-of-work father prays for a job, but nothing opens up. A wife prays for a husband who has turned his back on God, but the husband doesn’t change. In those times, we must look to Jesus for a way through the pain. We must pray, “Whatever happens, let Your will be done—not mine.” Then we take up our cross and follow Jesus.