It’s Easter week and for the Christian that means it is the most important season of the year. If it were not for Christ’s death on the cross and his resurrection 3 days later we would not have the faith we do today. That’s pretty significant!
When I run group coaching courses I like to offer reflections and meditations. They are a fun way to read scripture and reflect in ways we don’t normally do on our own. It’s also a way to get to know one another as we share our reflections. I invite you to [CLICK HERE] to experience this year’s (9 minute) Easter Meditation to see what comes up for you.
As I meditated on the scripture, I thought of God the Father in the scene in the garden of gethsemane. Oh how he must have wanted to reach his hand out of Heaven to save his Son from all the impending pain he would endure.
Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will
send me more than twelve legions of angels? Matt 26:53 ESV
Jesus brought his Father into what was unfolding to remind his disciples that what was going on was bigger than them. For me, it made me reflect on God. I wondered if was hard for him to NOT to save Jesus when the official’s guards were taking him away?
As a parent, I know how hard it is sometimes to not want to fix every situation for my kids. When they are small we get used to running their lives. When they sleep, eat, what they ware, what they watch. We impress on them what they believe and ourselves believe with all our might that they will continue to live as we taught them that as adults.
Then, they have “gethsemane” moments when the guards come to take them away. They go off to school, move to other States for jobs, get married and form their own beliefs. During which time they are tempted, get stung by mean people, and learn (often times the hard way) how far a dollar really goes.
I remember those moments when God directed me not to “save” my children from this or that, but to allow the scene to play out so they can learn deep lessons, and become better human beings.
The challenge with children, then becomes an exercise of wills and wisdom. Our wills and wisdom, more specifically! Perhaps you thought as I did that part of our role a parent was to protect our children from having to carry bags and bags of pain, regret or shame through life.
I’m eternally grateful, LITERALLY, to God that he didn’t save Jesus in the garden that night from the guards. I’m grateful for God’s example of watching his Son endure pain on the cross without intervention. I’m grateful that God knew the plan and no matter how hard it was from Him to allow it all to unfold, he didn’t run to the rescue. God’s example in journey from gethsemane to the cross is one that is now imprinted on my spirit all because of time spent going deeper and meditation on scripture.
Feel free to comment below with what you found during your own meditation.
