Andrea Sieberhagen
He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. Mark 14:33, NIV
In the garden of Gethsemane, we again see Jesus’ humanity among people. He takes some of His disciples with him. Very human, he does not want to be alone in his hour of anguish. He is afraid because he knows what his future holds. A difficult path lies ahead. He knows the cross awaits him and that only afterward will he go to the Father’s house.
The Son of God understands the purpose, but the human Son prays the plea: if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. Yet in Mark 14:36, he also prays, “Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
God became human on this earth to pour out his grace over us completely. He died on the cross on our behalf and carried our guilt.
We too sometimes find ourselves in circumstances where we feel anxious or even terrified about the future. Jesus understands, for he has been there. If we too can pray as he did, ‘not my will but yours …’
Often, we think we know what is best for us, but God always knows better. It is not always easy to surrender so completely, but we can strive to follow his perfect example.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, grant me calmness of spirit to surrender completely to your will. Amen.
Andrea Sieberhagen
I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being ... Ephesians 3:16, NIV
When we read Ephesians 3:16, we find a wonderful prayer in this verse, a prayer for inner strength. We would handle our daily problems so much better if we were “strong in our inner being”. When our strength comes from within. Too often, we rely on external forces to carry us through a day. We especially rely on the people around us. Perhaps we are just too dependent on their support, their approval, their applause, and recognition.
When you are strong on the inside, you find your strength within yourself. But you can only draw on that strength if you are “plugged into” the right source. If the people around you are your power source, you will often feel the frustration of power interruptions, because people are unreliable.
The only sustainable source of power is God the Father and his Word. If you recharge your spiritual batteries with God and his Word when you are tired and emotionally drained, you will experience that your strength truly comes from within! Suddenly there will be light on your path again and warmth in your heart. Then you can find your direction in this confusing world and feel love for those around you. And in the end, you are free from the underlying “unplugged” feeling that made you struggle through your days without strength.
Prayer:
My prayer for you
is that God through his Spirit
will give you the strength
to be inwardly so strong
so that every day you may know
he fills you with new power.
Andrea Sieberhagen
Ek bid dat Hy deur sy Gees uit die rykdom van sy heerlikheid aan julle die krag sal gee om innerlik sterk te word. Efesiërs 3:16, 1983-vertaling
As ons Efesiërs 3:16 lees is daar 'n wonderlike gebed in opgesluit. 'n Gebed vir innerlike krag. Ons sal ons daaglikse probleme soveel makliker hanteer as ons “innerlik sterk” is. As ons krag van binne af kom. Te dikwels maak ons staat op ander eksterne faktore om ons deur 'n dag te dra. Ons maak veral staat op die mense rondom ons. Ons is dalk net té afhanklik van hulle ondersteuning, hulle goedkeuring, hulle applous en erkenning.
As jy innerlik sterk is vind jy jou krag binne jouself. Jy kan egter net hierdie krag gebruik as jy op die regte plek “ingeprop” is. As die mense om jou, jou kragbron is, sal jy dikwels die frustrasie van kragonderbrekings ervaar omdat mense maar baie onbetroubaar is.
Die enigste volhoubare bron van krag is by God die Vader en sy Woord. As jy jou geestelike batterye by God en sy Woord gaan herlaai, wanneer jy moeg en emosioneel uitgeput is, sal jy ervaar dat jou krag werklik van binne kom! Dan is daar skielik weer lig op jou pad en warmte in jou hart! Dan kan jy weer jou rigting vind in hierdie deurmekaar wêreld en liefde voel vir almal rondom jou. En uiteindelik is jy ook ontslae van die onderliggende “unplugged” gevoel wat jou so kragteloos deur jou dag laat worstel het.
Gebed:
My gebed vir jou
is dat God deur sy Gees
aan jou die krag sal gee
om innerlik so sterk te wees
dat jy kan weet, deur elke dag
vul hy jou met nuwe krag.
Andrea Sieberhagen
Daarna neem Hy vir Petrus, Jakobus en Johannes saam met Hom. Hy het ontsteld en beangs geword en vir hulle gesê: "Ek voel doodsbenoud. Bly hier en waak! Markus 14:33, 1983-vertaling
In die tuin van Getsemane sien ons weer eens Jesus se mensheid tussen mense. Hy neem van sy dissipels saam met Hom. Eg menslik, wil Hy nie alleen wees in sy uur van angs nie. Hy is bang omdat Hy weet wat sy toekoms inhou. Daar lê 'n moeilike pad voor Hom. Hy wéét dat die kruis op hom wag en dat Hy eers daarna na die Vaderhuis sal gaan.
Die Godskind sien die rede, maar die menskind bid dat as dit moontlik is: "Neem hierdie lydensbeker van My af weg", maar dan bid Hy ook verder “Moet nogtans nie doen wat Ek wil nie, maar wat U wil.” (Markus 14:36)
God het mens geword op hierdie aarde om sy genade volkome oor ons uit te stort. Hy het namens ons aan die kruis gesterf en ons skuld gedra.
Ons beland ook soms in omstandighede waarin ons angstig of selfs doodsbenoud oor die toekoms voel. Jesus verstaan, want Hy was reeds daar. As ons dan ook soos Hy tot God kan bid, nogtans nie soos ek wil nie ...
Dikwels dink ons, dat ons weet wat die beste vir ons is, maar God weet altyd beter.
Dis nie altyd maklik om so volkome oor te gee nie, maar ons kan daarna streef om die perfekte voorbeeld na te volg.
Gebed: Hemelse Vader, gee aan my die kalmte van gees om my volkome aan u wil te onderwerp. Amen