Matthew 26:36-46
A lot can and has been said about this passage. But I want to focus on this point from the devotional: "At the end, Jesus seems so disappointed and sad. He's disappointed in his sleepy and weak friends, disappointed in the associate who betrays him, and sadly resigned to the betrayal which is about to occur....Jesus tasted the full range of human experience that we do, even the worst parts."
People are bound to disappoint us. Every guy I've ever dated has been a profound disappointment, simply by being a man. Marriage will be an excruciating disappointment, because wounded people will only perpetuate hurt. Kids will never measure up to expectations, and we will fail them too. It never ends.
Jesus knows what disappointment feels like. He meets us in our own Gethsemanes.
The spiritual exercise for this passage includes this:
Take a moment today to call to mind a place in your life where your future looks bleak. Call this area to mind for a moment, thinking of what about it causes fear or distress. Then thank Jesus for being present and available in all things, having experienced distress himself. Ask Jesus to help you to perceive how Jesus is with you now in your fear, how he is not asleep or inattentive. What comfort, strength, or help can the Spirit of God bring to you today? And ask Jesus if you like what the will of God might look like for you in this area.
Sometimes the bleakest feelings in life come from family--our family of origin, and the thought of starting a new family. I understand why people choose to have children, but I understand even more why they choose not to.
I have an image of Frodo conversing with Bilbo in Rivendell, where Bilbo has come to be with the elves. Bilbo's journey has finished, but he still plays an important role in Frodo's quest. His mithril-shirt will save Frodo's life, and the ring he found will nearly take it.
The generations before us have left the Shire and risked much to follow adventure. But sometimes, after forging a path for us, they slow down and settle down, and we wish they would pick up and come with us. But we have our own paths to traverse, and we must release them to be where they can receive the rest they need.
Together with the devotional passage, this scene from The Fellowship of the Ring brings me some comfort in the midst of my current Gethsemane. "Get up, let us be going..."
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