Morning Moments

Watching in Prayer
[Matt 26:40] And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?

In his book “The School of Obedience” Andrew Murray says, “You tell me there are many Christians who are content with ten minutes or a quarter of an hour. There are, but you will certainly not as a rule find them strong Christians. And the Students’ Movement is pleading with God, above everything that He would meet to train a race of devoted, whole-hearted young men and women. Christ asked great sacrifices of His disciples; He has perhaps asked little of you as yet. But now He allows, He invites, He longs for you to make some. Sacrifices make strong men. Sacrifices help wonderfully to wrench us away from earth and self-pleasing, and lift us heavenward. Do not try to pare down the time limit of the morning watch to less than the half-hour. There can be no question about the possibility of finding the time. Ten minutes from sleep, ten from company or amusement, ten from lessons. How easy where the heart is right, hungering to know God and His will perfectly!”

It seems so strange that we who say we love our Lord Jesus seem so content to send so little time watching in prayer with Him. Time alone in the quietness of our “garden” wherever it may be; sharing the burdens of His heart and vice versa is something few seem to ever experience. Knowing His agony of soul, His vexation of spirit, His yearning of heart are things most of us never fathom because it takes time and intimacy.

I am reminded of the time years ago of driving through the mountains and seeing a salt truck with the front end suspended over the cliff and the only thing keeping his truck and his life safe was the weight of the load of salt in the rear of the truck.

Sometimes the only thing that is keeping us from going over the edge is the stuff we are trying to get rid of that God wants to use to build character in us – the load of salt in the back of the truck. In the context of our text, Jesus’ load was the agony that was killing Him at the moment. He was not shirking the cross ahead of Him for He knew that was why He came, but it was the load – the agony of the garden – being alone and under such severe attack by the enemy, physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually, which was the very “load” that brought Him to say, “nevertheless, not my will but Thine be done.” That only happens in solitude, in agony, about what is ahead, with the load of what is.

BLESSINGS!