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As has everyone else ... my thoughts are dwelling upon my Lord and Master very much in these days leading up to the GREATEST GIFT :present: a person could ever receive from another ... :heartbeat::heartbeat:

I couldn't help but reflect on HOW MUCH TIME our Lord spent in PRAYER to his heavenly Father ... :pray:

After his baptism ... he spent 40 days ... and after that there are numerous references to his going off by himself to pray ... :pray:

It seems when there were things 'happening' in his life he wanted to INCLUDE HIS FATHER in them ... to SHARE them with him ...

As I was thinking about that it occurred to me that there HAD to have been times when our Lord was LONELY for his Father ... when he was HOMESICK for his heavenly home and his friends ... his family ...:grouphug: :cry:

So, often we think of Jesus as STRONG ... and indeed he WAS ... (and IS) but he was also HUMAN ... with human FEELINGS ... and as we sometimes get overwhelmed with various emotions ... I would think that our Lord did too ...

One thing I took note of when I started to go over some Scriptures that speak about our Lord praying was that he tended to talk with his heavenly Father by himself ... usually off by himself into a 'lonely place' ...

For example at the time he heard of his first cousin, John the Baptist's death, what did he seek to do ...?

Matt. 14:13,23 ...

13 At hearing this Jesus withdrew from there by boat into a lonely place for isolation; but the crowds, getting to hear of it, followed him on foot from the cities. 23 Eventually, having sent the crowds away, he went up into the mountain by himself to pray.

Some of the meanings for the word 'lonely' are to me very TELLING as the MOOD that our Lord may have been in when he prayed or talked to his Father ...

eremos

lonesome, desolate, solitary, wilderness, desert, waste

Mark 1:35 ...

35 And early in the morning, while it was still dark, he rose up and went outside and left for a lonely place, and there he began praying.

Luke 9:18 ...

18 Later, while he was praying alone, the disciples came together to him, and he questioned them, saying: “Who are the crowds saying that I am?

Luke 6:12 ...

12 In the progress of these days he went out into the mountain to pray, and he continued the whole night in prayer to God.

Yes, these are just some examples of how often our Lord sought to speak to his Father ... :pray: It would seem that his NEED to FEEL CLOSE to his Father must have been overwhelming at times ...:cheekkiss::hug::(

Here he was, a 'spiritual' person in amongst 'fleshly' ... and knowing the AWESOME responsibility that was set upon his shoulders to bring about a REVERSAL of all the bad ... literally what he said and did would AFFECT ALL MANKIND to come ... and eventually all mankind that come BEFORE ... (resurrection of course):shocked:

How he must have TALKED with his Father, asking for ADVICE, for HELP, for STRENGTH, for WISDOM, for ENDURANCE, for SELF-CONTROL (for at anytime our Lord could have snuffed out or hurt anyone he wanted (think of all the pain and injustice he saw) or given them anything they wanted as he had the POWER to do so (think of what he could have 'given' to his friends and family ... but he wasn't partial and so did not)) ... :pray:

Can you just imagine him talking to Jehovah about all the GOOD he was able to do ... how he caused JOY to those who were suffering :cheer:... and HOPE to those who were downtrodden :D ...!!

Yes, how our Lord must have TREASURED those times of isolation ... for there were NO DISTRACTIONS and he could speak out loud or silently, he could cry or he could laugh, he could stand, sit, walk, kneel, or lay as he spoke to the one he was so yearning to be back with ...!:cheekkiss::hug:

Yes, Jesus was FREE to talk with his Father ... and he gave that freedom to US as well when he finally surrendered his soul on our behalf ...:):cry:

And as during his earthly ministry, so to on the night of his betrayal he sought out his Father for help, strength, succor ... the NEED to feel the LOVE OF HIS FATHER must have been STRONG in our Lord ... and his ... our heavenly Father didn't let him down ... :hug::cheekkiss:

Matt. 26:36,42,44 ...

36 Then Jesus came with them to the spot called Geth·sem′a·ne, and he said to the disciples: “Sit down here while I go over there and pray.” 42 Again, for the second time, he went off and prayed, saying: “My Father, if it is not possible for this to pass away except I drink it, let your will take place.” 44 So leaving them, he again went off and prayed for the third time, saying once more the same word.

Yes, we KNOW that our God strengthened him, for our Savior was faithful to the DEATH ...

Perhaps it was during such times that he felt his Father was CLOSER to him ... not so FAR AWAY ... light years away ... :crybaby: and made the lonely times easier to bear ... :(:friends:

And we too can draw comfort, hope and strength from FOLLOWING our Lord's example, yes, walking in his footsteps CLOSELY ...

Let US take ADVANTAGE as often as need be to speak with our heavenly Father ... to draw close to Him ... to FEEL him in our lives ... in BOTH the GOOD times and the BAD ... when we need help in our studies ... when we are perplexed, when we are happy, when we are sad, when we are lost, when we are upset ... oh ... in ALL aspects of our lives ...

Just some ramblings that I've been thinking and feeling and wanted to share them with someone ... my family ... :grouphug:

Luv as always ... BR :sheepy: :bouncyhearts:

Hi BR,

Nice post. It's interesting how Jesus always was praying by himself and even told his disciples to practice their righteousness alone, and not in front of people. It is so reversed in modern religion.

Very nice indeed. Thank you for your thoughts. I enjoyed reading it.

I've often wondered what they talked about for so long. And how the angels administered to him; what they were telling him.

Thanks again, PPCM_

AS I was reading this,  I was also thinking about how Jesus was in private when he prayed,

I feel that this is so much more significant then we may think..

For if no one showed an outward jesture in front of men as to Who was a Godly "man"   . the only real measure others would have would be their fruitage..  actions speak volumes.

And thanks BR

HI SIS BR

You can ramble all you want when encouraging us to spend lots of time in prayer as Jesus did leaving us a wonderful model to follow.

Love ya

E & E

I liked what you wrote their. As soon as things go bad.......the prayers go up! When thinkgs go good, do we say thanks?

God certainly does want us to lean on Him in the "bad times" but I'm sure He also loves to get a thank you, and hear about how wonderful it is to be alive!

No one likes to be around people who are constantly complaining.......not even God. It is good that we tell God about all that is on our heart...good times and bad.

Thanks BR,
iknowhim