Was he afraid?

Was Jesus afraid to go to the cross?

They went to a place called Gethsemane and Jesus said to his disciples, ” Sit here while I pray.”  He took Peter, James and John along with with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.” (Mark 14:32-34)

Imagine if Jesus had lived his life constantly worried about the day he would go to the cross.  Imagine if he obsessed over that day and worried.

But he didn’t.  However, he did pray to God in his distress…

Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” (Mark 14: 35-36)

And on that Friday, he walked forward, fully in love, knowing that His life would never be the same, and like a hero, Jesus died on the cross…for us.

His purpose fulfilled.

What is your purpose?

Are you afraid?

I have been wrestling with some big questions this week.

Decisions. Life. Purpose.

As I face these questions, I wrestle with the fear of the unknown.

Fear is false evidence appearing real.  This is a quote that my friend, Carl, gave me this last week.

Fear often gets in the way of our true purpose because we are afraid. It can be paralyzing.

I have this tendency to take the unknown and create stories that are wild, untrue…false evidence.  I imagine things that limit my ability to live out my full purpose.  I obsess over things I cannot control.  I imagine the worst scenario and then I become afraid.  Sure, there are times when fear is valid, like going to the dentist for a root canal or something more serious, like facing death.  Who wants to face that?  Should we let the fear stop us for doing what is good and right?

When we base decisions on our safety, comfort, or fear, we have moved God aside.   We limit our purpose. (A Carl quote)

Christ died for us…but he was raised from the dead.  He conquered death. This is the foundation of my faith.  Without the resurrection, my faith is dead.

We can be victorious in the very things we want to avoid when we trust in God.  (From Oswald Chambers).

As I doubted myself this morning, as I wrestled, as I feared the future, God reminded me of these things.  He reminded me to trust him with my life.  He was victorious unto death.  He lived out His purpose for me…I can live out my purpose for Him.

What is unknown can be scary.  But if we let the unknown stop us from living out our purpose, it can be tragic.

Are you living out your purpose?

Thank you Carl for your wisdom and your amazing quotes.

Side note (Carl and Nancy went with me to Ethiopia. They are a wonderful couple from Cornwall Church and I want to adopt them as my relatives)