Sleeping Friends
“Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter.”
- Matthew 26:36-40
At times, as I lie in bed, tossing and turning, ghosts of my pasts haunt me; thoughts bottled up unreleased to anyone refuse me sleep. Not having a wife to wake up and talk with to free the thoughts that race through my mind, I am consumed by these thoughts I do not even want to think about, denying my weary body of its much needed rest.
I contemplate, if I was married, my wife could help me rid of these thoughts and help me fall asleep. But insomnia is a poor reason to rush marriage.
Then, I realize that these thoughts would not trouble me as much if I could just release them and talk about them with a trusted friend. Alas, those kinds are hard to find, and even when you do find some, they will not be with you always physically, and although technology has bridged great distances, their own circumstances also consume them, and may make them no longer available for you, and even when I believe that I can contain my own circumstances within me, thoughts of these stir in my brain when it is time to sleep, and when I need relief, although my cell phone is frequently by my side, my friends are no longer available, for by that time, they are fast asleep.
I wonder if Jesus had similar thoughts the night of his arrest. I doubt Jesus needed his disciples to talk about His impending situation. Many times, neither do we need someone to talk about our situations specifically. It’s just comforting to know somebody’s there. Jesus was well aware that days after that night, He would undergo humiliating trials, painful, undeserved punishments, and the abandonment of almost all His earthly friends, ending with His crucifixion, and since He had taken an earthly form, He was not spared of any of the feelings, be it physical or emotional, that normal humans undergo. So you can imagine His disappointment, when at the night He was troubled by the things He must endure, He goes back to His disciples, His friends, and finds them sleeping instead of keeping watch with Him.
To be sure, the disciples were not aware of what Christ will soon undergo; otherwise they would have most likely stayed vigilantly awake. But ignorance has rarely been a good excuse.
If we were to place ourselves in the position of the disciples, knowing what we know now, we would easily and perhaps arrogantly say that we would sacrifice a time of much needed rest (or sacrifice anything else for that matter) to be there for a friend who needs our comforting shoulder to lay a very troubled hand on. But if that were true, if I was to ask you, who among your friends are undergoing such trouble, would you know exactly who they are and which demons are assailing them? Just like the unaware disciples, so are we to the troubles our friends are undergoing. And since we are unaware, we go about our usual business, busy with our own situations, and sleeping soundly as the body must.
Yes, God is more than enough, and He is the perfect being to talk to, but it is more complicated than that. (Please refer to my other article “Hard to be Alone”) The better lesson that I learned here is that as our friends may be unaware of our troubles and tribulations, so are we to theirs. Though most of it may be unspoken, the trials our friends are undergoing are almost certainly there, and some may need a caring heart very badly, if only there is one who is willing and able. Thus we must remember, as we need our friends, they need us too. During the times when the storm is still in our lives, when we can rest our heads easily and sleep soundly, it is also good to remember our friends, and be concerned with the situations they may be undertaking. In fact, such caring may even lead us to a new found and meaningful purpose in our life, and every heart you help may be another lifted burden that can give you peace to sleep.
Friend, why are you still awake?
(Originally written: 2005, March 1, 5:10 pm)
- A. L. E. -
Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter.”
- Matthew 26:36-40
At times, as I lie in bed, tossing and turning, ghosts of my pasts haunt me; thoughts bottled up unreleased to anyone refuse me sleep. Not having a wife to wake up and talk with to free the thoughts that race through my mind, I am consumed by these thoughts I do not even want to think about, denying my weary body of its much needed rest.
I contemplate, if I was married, my wife could help me rid of these thoughts and help me fall asleep. But insomnia is a poor reason to rush marriage.
Then, I realize that these thoughts would not trouble me as much if I could just release them and talk about them with a trusted friend. Alas, those kinds are hard to find, and even when you do find some, they will not be with you always physically, and although technology has bridged great distances, their own circumstances also consume them, and may make them no longer available for you, and even when I believe that I can contain my own circumstances within me, thoughts of these stir in my brain when it is time to sleep, and when I need relief, although my cell phone is frequently by my side, my friends are no longer available, for by that time, they are fast asleep.
I wonder if Jesus had similar thoughts the night of his arrest. I doubt Jesus needed his disciples to talk about His impending situation. Many times, neither do we need someone to talk about our situations specifically. It’s just comforting to know somebody’s there. Jesus was well aware that days after that night, He would undergo humiliating trials, painful, undeserved punishments, and the abandonment of almost all His earthly friends, ending with His crucifixion, and since He had taken an earthly form, He was not spared of any of the feelings, be it physical or emotional, that normal humans undergo. So you can imagine His disappointment, when at the night He was troubled by the things He must endure, He goes back to His disciples, His friends, and finds them sleeping instead of keeping watch with Him.
To be sure, the disciples were not aware of what Christ will soon undergo; otherwise they would have most likely stayed vigilantly awake. But ignorance has rarely been a good excuse.
If we were to place ourselves in the position of the disciples, knowing what we know now, we would easily and perhaps arrogantly say that we would sacrifice a time of much needed rest (or sacrifice anything else for that matter) to be there for a friend who needs our comforting shoulder to lay a very troubled hand on. But if that were true, if I was to ask you, who among your friends are undergoing such trouble, would you know exactly who they are and which demons are assailing them? Just like the unaware disciples, so are we to the troubles our friends are undergoing. And since we are unaware, we go about our usual business, busy with our own situations, and sleeping soundly as the body must.
Yes, God is more than enough, and He is the perfect being to talk to, but it is more complicated than that. (Please refer to my other article “Hard to be Alone”) The better lesson that I learned here is that as our friends may be unaware of our troubles and tribulations, so are we to theirs. Though most of it may be unspoken, the trials our friends are undergoing are almost certainly there, and some may need a caring heart very badly, if only there is one who is willing and able. Thus we must remember, as we need our friends, they need us too. During the times when the storm is still in our lives, when we can rest our heads easily and sleep soundly, it is also good to remember our friends, and be concerned with the situations they may be undertaking. In fact, such caring may even lead us to a new found and meaningful purpose in our life, and every heart you help may be another lifted burden that can give you peace to sleep.
Friend, why are you still awake?
(Originally written: 2005, March 1, 5:10 pm)
- A. L. E. -
