November 24, 2019 - INSCRIPTIONS FROM THE HEART
To Watch & Pray
I must confess when I was younger, I have fallen asleep while praying – during a sermon and even during a congregational meeting where I snored so loud that the one leading the meeting wanted to make sure if I was okay. Even during our times of prayer for the youth in our weekly leadership meetings, we would pray for three minutes together as a group and I would sometimes fall asleep while sitting on the couch with our eyes closed even if there was music playing. Sometimes, the urgency of our need to pray and to be vigilant in our everyday lives knowing there’s a spiritual battle is trumped by our physical needs.
No one was worse in being vigilant in prayer than Jesus’ disciples and in one of the most crucial times in history too:
32 They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. 34 “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.” - Mark 14:32-34
Before Jesus was to be tried and crucified, He went out to pray. Jesus took with Him Peter, James, and John – an inner circle of three best friends. Yet when Jesus needed their support the most, when He was “deeply distressed” even to the point of sweating drops of blood (Luke 22:44), Jesus’ best friends failed Him. After just one hour, instead of praying with Him and being alert to keep watch, they slept. They didn’t do this once, but three times throughout the night until Jesus was betrayed and arrested.
Church, believe it or not, we are at a critical time in our lives as a church. We are experiencing growth; many are coming to faith, being baptized, people are recommitting their lives to Christ and many are growing in their love and knowledge of our Lord than ever before. We are at a time when we need to be vigilant and pray. For as the Spirit moves, the enemy is also moving to destroy. Let us not be blinded by our physical needs but let’s set them aside to make time to fast & pray in the Lord.
Fight on church! To God be the glory!
Pastor Immanuel Garcera