Tuesday, March 26, 2024  

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Today's Hymn
“Go to Dark Gethsemane”

Go to dark Gethsemane,
all who feel the tempter’s power;
your Redeemer’s conflict see;
watch with him one bitter hour;
turn not from his griefs away;
learn from Jesus Christ to pray.

Follow to the judgment hall;
view the Lord of life arraigned;
O the wormwood and the gall!
O the pangs his soul sustained!
Shun not suffering, shame, or loss;
learn from him to bear the cross.

by James Montgomery
Hymn 220, Glory to God
verse 1–2

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Reflection

In 2011 my wife and I joined a Fourth Church adult education trip to the Holy Land. Because of its place in the last days of Christ’s life in Matthew and Mark, the Garden of Gethsemane was high on my list of things to experience, so I found a recording and listened to the wonderful music that goes with these words.

The first verse tells all of us that Jesus lived with, and did not turn away from, his bitterest days. Wormwood and gall describe truly difficult times. How does Christ teach us to bear the cross? He demonstrates that the love of God is a constant in his, and therefore in my, life. Prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, at our dining table, or anywhere else is truly the answer.

Jesus lived with us in human form. As he walks with me through the highs and lows of my life, our Lord has lived experience which he shares with me on my journey.

Those of you who know us are aware that we faced a major loss in 2017 when I suffered a traumatic brain injury and lost the ability to walk. Our Christ was there with us and answered our pleas in many ways, not least of them in the faces of all of those wonderful souls who were and are there for us. Of course, I am referring to our community here at Fourth Church, but we also include a myriad of other folks, sometimes random strangers who have reached out to provide much-needed immediate assistance in all kinds of situations.

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Prayer
Thank you for being ever in our lives, from the highest high to the lowest lows. Please equip us to share your love and point to your grace to all that we encounter. Amen.

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Written by Blake Anderson, Member of Fourth Presbyterian Church

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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