This week, we’re taking a short break from normal posts to think about ways to celebrate Easter. Yesterday, we talked about the fact that Jesus’ Death and Resurrection helps us to confront our fears. Now, with the idea of Jesus’ victory over death in mind, we’re going to look at four issues (over the next four days) that came up during the days and hours surrounding the Cross and the Empty Tomb.
Tuesday is about Prayer
Jesus’ Final Prayers
Believe it or not, Jesus did a lot of praying in his final moments.
- Jesus prays for His disciples
- Jesus prays specifically for Peter to persevere
- Jesus prays for Himself and the challenge of the Cross
- Jesus prays for his enemies
- Jesus calls out to God in agony
Jesus took a lot of time to tell his disciples to pray in his final moments.
- He encouraged them to pray more than a few times while celebrating the Passover with them (John 14, 15, and 16
- He asked them to pray and watch in the Garden with Him
Two Convicting Analogies
I once read a quote from C.S. Lewis in Letters to Malcolm about the irony of prayer. He noted in one of the letters that as rose bushes naturally produce roses, Christians should naturally pray.
I also heard a sermon during a prayer emphasis by John Piper that said that prayer to a Christian is like breathing to a human-they can’t help but do it if they’re alive.
Why Don’t I Pray?
Considering these analogies and Jesus’ appeal to lots of prayer in His last moments, I’m struck by the fact that it’s easier for me to run to the drugstore and buy a stuffed bunny and plastic eggs than it is to stop and pray (and actually focus) for a moment.
A while back, I pondered the reasons why I don’t pray more. And pondering is good, but I want to do more than ponder and actually celebrate this Easter season by committing a period of time each day for prayer.
If Jesus stopped a celebration and spent his last free moments of life praying to His Father, I can’t get away with saying that prayer just isn’t a big deal.
- If I’m a rose bush, I’ve got to produce some roses.
- If I’m a human, I’ve got to breathe.
- If I trust Jesus as my guide and Savior, I should seek to pray like He prayed.
Want to celebrate Easter with me? Let’s commit to the discipline of taking time to pray more often.
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Thank you so much for these posts. They are inspiring and challenging me to better live out what I believe. I especially liked the part in your post where you pointed out the different things Jesus prayed about…praying for enemies is probably the most convicting. How often do we get very angry at someone for simply hurting our feelings? And if we’re honest, the last thing on our minds is praying for them! Yet Jesus was able to do this for those who were crucifying Him!!! WOW. That’s our model.
God bless you for sharing these truths.
Amy’s last blog post..Easter Preparation