Read: Luke 22:39-46
Being in agony he prayed more earnestly. (v. 44)
The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines agony as experiencing “intense pain of mind or body.” Other similar words are anguish, torture, or struggle. Think of prisoners of war, someone living with chronic pain, or people who have been physically, emotionally, or spiritually abused. Edvard Munch’s painting The Scream and Michaelangelo’s Pietà offers us visual examples. The artists capture agony in the facial expressions of their subjects.
In today’s Bible reading, we also see a picture of agony: Jesus’s intense prayer on the Mount of Olives. He did not want to face the suffering on the cross that awaited him in Jerusalem. “And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground” (v. 44). But in the end, he submitted his will to his heavenly Father and prayed, “Not my will, but yours, be done” (v. 42).
We may not sweat blood like Jesus did, but we have the comfort of knowing that Jesus knows what it is like to agonize over an intense situation. When we are in the state of agony, facing that intense physical or mental pain, we are invited to do what Jesus did—pray. We do not have to agonize alone. Jesus understands. He invites us to pray like he did and submit our will to our heavenly Father. He is the only one who can give us the strength to go on.
As you pray, turn to Jesus in your time of agony, and then bring to Jesus someone else who is facing serious struggle.
Nancy Boote, an ordained minister in the Reformed Church in America, lives in Holland, Michigan, with her husband. She serves in a variety of leadership positions within the denomination. Besides being a wife, mother, and grandmother, Nancy enjoys taking prayer walks, hiking in nature, mentoring, and has a heart for justice matters.
