Being in the Garden of Gethsemane
As I write this, Lent is just 24 hours old and I feel like I have been sitting in the Garden of Gethsemane forever.
The real problem is, the Garden is very crowded this year. Even in the midst of misery, there is no peace and quiet!
The pandemic continues to rear its’ ugly head – now in several new mutations. The political scene is still in an uproar, no matter which side you are on. We are coming up to the first year marker (I refuse to call it an anniversary) of when the shutdown began and life as we knew it was over.
So many problems, so many real tragedies all around. So many requests for prayers. It is overwhelming, disheartening. And isn’t that exactly where the Evil One wants us? I can see him standing at the Gate to the Garden of Gethsemane with his straw hat and megaphone saying “Hurry, hurry, hurry. Step right up, folks”.
But, we are in good company. Our Lord sat in this very Garden with a very heavy heart, feeling lost and abandoned by those closest to Him – including His own Father. There is nothing wrong with being in the Garden. After all, Jesus Himself, spent time there.
The difference is, Jesus got up and continued the will of His Father. What a beautiful example for us. This Lent we can offer up whatever has us sitting in the Garden – struggling with finances, adjusting to a new job or losing the old one, and certainly all the health issues that are attacking so many of us. Some of these issues have us nailed in place and it might feel like we can’t get up. But remember Who took all these things with Him to His cross and was nailed there. How can we do less than was done for us. Don’t let what is holding you down, keep you there. We all spend time in the Garden throughout our lives. Use your experiences in the Garden as an offering to the Father for the time that His son spent there for you.
The only good thing about the Garden being so crowded – you don’t have far to go to grasp the hand of someone who understands what you are going through. Look around. Everyone who has ever walked this earth has been to the Garden. Ask your loved ones who have gone “home” to pray that you will benefit from being there.
May your journey through Lent bring you closer to the glory of Easter morning when Jesus broke free of all that had nailed Him to the cross!
