Luke 22:41
Have you ever been alone? It is interesting how the solitary stillness of time can play havoc on the mind. Some cultures around the world initiate their young men into adulthood by having them spend time alone in the wild. Leadership schools will also employ a similar technique. In each instance there are built in safeguards and the young or inexperienced are actually being watched by others through the dark hours of the night. Jesus withdrew from His disciples about a stones throw away. Far enough to be distant but not immediately present. The disciples had heard Jesus recent ominous prediction of a betrayal (Luke 2210-19, 22) by those who were close but yet so far away. It is interesting to note that Jesus did not run from His betrayers or His disciples in some of the darkest hours of His life on earth. Instead He knelt to pray in the distance where He could be seen. He submitted Himself in prayer to the Father who is unseen yet present while remaining present for the disciples and their yet unknown dark night.
There are several lessons from this verse for us today. First, the distance that we may feel during the darkest of our nights is not as great as we think. The Father did not abandon His Son in the garden and neither did Jesus leave His disciples. As we look at our lives we may think that God has left but in reality He is closer than we think. Second, the connection to to the Father is maintained through submission and prayer. Some times our heart may need to follow our actions. Jesus acted out His submission as He knelt and communicated through prayer. Through prayer we find God’s strength to face the dark nights of our lives and realize that He is closer than we think.
Have you ever been alone? It is interesting how the solitary stillness of time can play havoc on the mind. Some cultures around the world initiate their young men into adulthood by having them spend time alone in the wild. Leadership schools will also employ a similar technique. In each instance there are built in safeguards and the young or inexperienced are actually being watched by others through the dark hours of the night. Jesus withdrew from His disciples about a stones throw away. Far enough to be distant but not immediately present. The disciples had heard Jesus recent ominous prediction of a betrayal (Luke 2210-19, 22) by those who were close but yet so far away. It is interesting to note that Jesus did not run from His betrayers or His disciples in some of the darkest hours of His life on earth. Instead He knelt to pray in the distance where He could be seen. He submitted Himself in prayer to the Father who is unseen yet present while remaining present for the disciples and their yet unknown dark night.
There are several lessons from this verse for us today. First, the distance that we may feel during the darkest of our nights is not as great as we think. The Father did not abandon His Son in the garden and neither did Jesus leave His disciples. As we look at our lives we may think that God has left but in reality He is closer than we think. Second, the connection to to the Father is maintained through submission and prayer. Some times our heart may need to follow our actions. Jesus acted out His submission as He knelt and communicated through prayer. Through prayer we find God’s strength to face the dark nights of our lives and realize that He is closer than we think.
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