Watch with Me

"Watch with Me" (Matthew 26:36-41)

"Sit here while I go and pray over there." (vs. 36)

I received a strong reminder this week about the importance of spending time in God's presence. That time gets used in different ways: prayer, Bible reading, Bible study are the ways most familiar to a lot of us. My reminder this week pushed me to think about another way to enjoy God's presence.

Our scripture this morning comes out of Jesus' time in the garden. It's the night before His death. As He entered the garden He told the disciples to "Sit here while I go and pray over there." He took Peter, James and John further into the garden and said to them, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with me."

Jesus invited them to share His time in the garden. Instead, they fell asleep. Somehow they missed the value of just "being" with Jesus. He didn't ask them to pray, just watch. He didn't ask them to suffer with Him, just watch. He simply asked them to grasp the importance of "being" with Him. I wonder if they realized after His death that they had lost an incredible opportunity to share in the Lord's suffering by just "being" with Him.

Do you remember the psalmist's words in Psalm 46:10? "Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!" All that exaltation begins with simply "being still." It may be one of the best ways to discover the reality of God.

A strong correlation exists between "be still" in Psalm 46 and "watch with me" in Matthew 26. Both ask nothing more than an intentional choice to "be" with God in quietness and stillness. Most of us are far too busy. We rush through a time of devotion the same way we shove breakfast down our throats. We're busy! We have work to do, people to see, places to go! Everything else gets done, and God gets squeezed out of the picture.

I challenge you to rearrange the schedule. Find fifteen or twenty minutes in your day to "be still and know." How does it work, you ask? It's easy. Sit down in a quiet place, calm yourself and say, "Here I am Lord. I'm here to be with You. I'll listen for Your voice, but if You choose not to speak, that's OK. I'm just here with You." Don't ask for anything. Don't pray for anyone. Just "be still and know." -- John Strain is Senior Pastor of First Baptist Toms River

God's WORD for YOU: Proverbs 4; Isaiah 20-22; Ephesians 6

Great Quote: While the Lord calls me to be wise and discerning, he reminds me often that his discernment cannot dwell in a cynical distrustful heart. With Him, there is no hidden agenda and no ulterior motive. His gifts are free for the taking but I cannot take these gifts if my hands are already full of my own weapons of self-protection. Therefore, He asks me to lay down the shields that I have forged for protection and to pick up the shield of faith in their place. He asks me to take Him at His Word. Katherine Walden

Mrs. Raws, wife of Pastor Bill Raws, was recently diagnosed with cancer. She is having surgery this Monday. We have set up a blog for our Keswick friends to encourage Ruth. I'd love to have you jot her a note: www.americaskeswick.org. Let her know you are a FREEDOM FIGHTER.