Luke 22

Luke 22:39-46   And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him.  ⁴⁰ And when he came to the place, he said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."  ⁴¹ And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed,  ⁴² saying, "Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done."  ⁴³ And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him.  ⁴⁴ And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.  ⁴⁵ And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow,  ⁴⁶ and he said to them, "Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation."

Why is it sometimes I feel like I continue to go around the same mountain over and over?!?…I’d like to get off this ride!  What I mean is it seems I continue to stumble over the same issues over and over.  I do well for a while…and them BAM!! I’m on my butt again, fallen down from smacking into temptation…again.

Then the process starts over, I start praying again for my challenges and areas of weakness.  I ask God for strength to overcome.  I focus my eyes with determination on Him and pray that He might help me keep Him as my focal point.  I celebrate as it seems I have overcome.  Now here’s where I always get in to trouble…I let my guard down.  Obviously this area of struggle is not longer a concern – right?  Wrong.  Satan is tricky.  I think he backs off until we think “we’ve arrived” and then comes knocking on our door and throws us into a tailspin once more.

I’m encouraged because Jesus’ disciples can relate.  In Jesus’ final hours on earth, His disciples fell into temptation; falling asleep when He needed them most.  The advice Jesus gave?  Pray.  I love that in verse 46 He says, “Rise and pray.”  We need to come to our feet and pray…otherwise we might fall back asleep.  Standing gives us more authority.  Standing gives us more energy.  We need to stand and pray that we might not come into temptation.

Overcoming temptation is a process…sometimes a lifelong process.  Sometimes we need help – an accountability partner who checks on us randomly and is praying for us, a support group of people who understand our struggle, a counselor who can listen and help us work through our challenges.  I encourage you to not “go it alone.”  You are not alone – this is one of the biggest lies Satan gets us to believe.  We all have our challenges and issues…trust me.  If there is any way I can help – let me know.

I’m praying for you…if fact – I’m standing and praying for you!!

Pastor Amy