Fields United Methodist Church

“Pray that you do not come into the time of Trial”

Luke 22:40

When Jesus prayed his focus was only on God and those he was lifting in prayer. Before Jesus was arrested he went to a place that he frequented often and prayed fervently, bringing with him a few disciples who fell asleep or were otherwise preoccupied with dealing with the changes that will soon be taking place in their lives.  Prayer is among the greatest gifts we have received from God; it is truly a “means of grace” that channels the love, hope, joy, peace and the absolute presence of God to us.  Yet we can be distracted by the cares and demands of our day which takes away from our relationship with God and our prayer life.  Maybe one way to interpret “the time of trial” that Jesus cautions us about are those things that we think we can handle by ourselves, things in life that relegate God at times to an afterthought. In the Letter of James, the writer calls those who are suffering to pray; those who are sick to call on the church to pray for them. (James 5:13-14) It is during these times that we can be easily distracted by our own pain and fail to see God through our Savior Jesus the Christ by our side. Jesus calls us to keep focus but sometimes we “fall asleep” as the disciples did on the Mt. of Olives. Maybe we lose track of Jesus or maybe we are just so into what is going on in us and around us that we just forget Jesus is always there, wrapping his mighty arms around us to give us comfort when life becomes uncomfortable, peace when peace is a distant memory, hope when all seems hopeless, and grace when we feel alone and unloved.  There are times when we are too weak and tired to pray, times that life seems just to be getting in the way… The church, the Body of Christ, is our lifeline; our lifeline when all seems lost. James said go to the church and ask for prayer; the prayers of the faithful will give comfort to our weary souls, and focus when we are losing focus on the truth that is Jesus Christ. Prayer is not only our connection with God, it is our connection with each other as we affirm our need to have others pray for us and for each of us to be in prayer for others.  Thank you Jesus for the gift of prayer and for the grace we receive when we pray for one another and for ourselves. Jesus prayed, let us go and do likewise.

Rev. Tom Joyce, pastor

Fields United Methodist Church