FIRST UMC OF SEALY
  • Home
  • Worship
  • Who We Are
    • Church Staff
    • First Board
    • Our History >
      • Sanctuary Remodel
  • Ministries
    • Adult Discipleship >
      • Lenten Bible Study
      • Fellowship Sunday School Class
      • Men's Prayer Breakfast
    • Caring
    • Youth >
      • Confirmation
    • Children >
      • First Kids Mother's Day Out >
        • Registration
        • First Kids Summer Day Camp >
          • First Kids Summer Day Camp Enrollment
      • Safe Sanctuary
      • Vacation Bible School
    • Missions & Outreach >
      • Free Little Pantry
      • Youth Mission Project
    • United Methodist Women
  • Events
  • Giving
  • Contact Us

HOLY WEEK DEVOTIONS: Thursday, The Garden

4/9/2020

0 Comments

 
CLICK HERE TO READ Matthew 26:36-46
From Brother Mike: 

I got this art print a few years ago at a church rummage sale. I do not know the artist or the age of this framed print. If I had to guess, I would say it is about as old as I am.

This is Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane the night before he gave his life in atonement for our sins. In the right background are Peter, James, and John, unable to stay awake to watch and pray – their spirits are willing but their bodies are weak. (The second photo is of my friend Steve kneeling and praying where Jesus knelt and prayed.)

I had been watching for a piece like this ever since I returned from my trip to Israel in 2015, because my visit to the Garden of Gethsemane had been so meaningful. The first devotional that I wrote for "The Upper Room" was about my experience at Gethsemane:
-------------------
It had been a long, cold, and wet day of touring in Israel. We were jostled by the crowds at the Church of the Nativity. We shivered in the cold and looked for shelter from the wind in a shepherd’s field east of Bethlehem. We climbed a steep and muddy hill to see Herod’s fortress of Herodion. And now we navigated Jerusalem’s rush hour traffic to arrive at the Mount of Olives and visit the Garden of Gethsemane.

As I knelt and prayed with my hand on the rock where Jesus had knelt and prayed, my mind went back to Nazareth, where we had been the day before. For the first time I realized how much Jesus is like his mother, Mary. We often think of how much Jesus is like his father, God. But in this moment I felt the power of the prayer that Jesus and Mary had prayed 50 miles and 30 years apart: “Lord God, I will do whatever you want me to do.”

Mary and Jesus did not want to do what God asked of them, but they did it anyway. God asks us to give ourselves sacrificially and we often lack the “want to.” It helps me to be in communion with others who share this struggle, and it brings me comfort to know that Jesus was following the example of his mother that night in Gethsemane.

---------------------------

And here we are again doing what we have to do – not what we want to do.

Lord, give us the strength we need to do what we must do and, if it is possible, help us to have a good attitude in the midst of hardship. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Be well,
Brother Mike
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    In matters of faith, we at First United Methodist Church, Sealy put primary reliance on the Bible. In scripture, we understand that we are all God’s children; therefore, we will be a church that cares for the needs of our church and local community through prayer, deeds, inspiration, and love in the spirit of Christ.

    Archives

    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Location

Our Mission

​Caring for the needs of our church and community through prayer, deeds, inspiration and love in the Spirit of Christ.

Sunday Worship: 10 am
Adult & Children & Youth Sunday School 9 am
First Kids Mother's Day Out
​(Tuesday & Thursday; 8am to 2pm; Ages 1-3)
Rev Pat Bell, Pastor
First United Methodist Church Sealy
200 Atchison Street
​Sealy, Texas 77474

979.885.2223  ​

Contact Us

    Connect With us:

    Sign up to receive emails and newsletters from First UMC Sealy.
Submit
  • Home
  • Worship
  • Who We Are
    • Church Staff
    • First Board
    • Our History >
      • Sanctuary Remodel
  • Ministries
    • Adult Discipleship >
      • Lenten Bible Study
      • Fellowship Sunday School Class
      • Men's Prayer Breakfast
    • Caring
    • Youth >
      • Confirmation
    • Children >
      • First Kids Mother's Day Out >
        • Registration
        • First Kids Summer Day Camp >
          • First Kids Summer Day Camp Enrollment
      • Safe Sanctuary
      • Vacation Bible School
    • Missions & Outreach >
      • Free Little Pantry
      • Youth Mission Project
    • United Methodist Women
  • Events
  • Giving
  • Contact Us