When we are uneasy...

He went on a little farther and bowed with his face to the ground, praying, "My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine."
~ Matthew 26:30

The most difficult part of Jesus' journey to the cross is seeing him be human. I mean this in the most loving way.

I think we all encounter this at some point in our life. Knowing what lies ahead, and praying to God, "Please, let this pass from me."

I sometimes find that my mind has difficulty "shutting down." Sometimes, there is simply uneasiness that happens in our lives. It's not that I am worried about anything in particular, and I am certainly not walking the path that Christ was that night, knowing that he was about to be arrested and condemned to die, but sometimes there is uneasiness.

We cannot even begin to imagine what that must have been like, however, we do know what it's like to be given bad news. We have all experienced tests and trials in our life that we simply must "work through" or "experience."

For me, as difficult as it is to see Christ so human, it also is a reminder to me that God has "been there, done that."

I think about the fact that God dwelt among us. Through Christ, God has felt the sun bake upon his face, the smell of the dust as it encircles the sky, catching the scent of flowers blooming nearby, while also knowing the salty taste of his own tears, as he cried at the tomb of a friend. God truly knows us.

Our ability to arrive at the other side of an illness, job loss, or any kind of a personal struggle, serves to remind us that while not all cups are like that which Jesus prayed would pass, we are offered vessels to take up and drink.

Today I pray that we become one with God through Christ, who will provide the strength to make it through whatever cup passes before us.

Stay in God's grip!

G. Todd Williams (c) 2018