For many of us the
perfect day off would mean relaxing by doing something that we really enjoy
like taking a ride to the beach, puttering around the garden, a trip to the
mall or just spending some time on the couch watching a favorite movie or
two. As I looked at the scriptures that
tell of all Jesus did that week, I personally sense that Jesus had a little
something different on His mind than just kicking back and relaxing! When you factor in His normal pattern in the
past, you would observe that when things got tough, Jesus went off alone to
spend time with His Father. I think that
is what Jesus did on Wednesday of Holy Week.
As I studied and
thought on this today, I was reminded of Hebrews 4:2-3 where the writer is
talking about our need to add our faith to the Word of God in order to enter
into His rest. Jesus knew what was
coming up and the task that He came to perform for all of mankind and felt the necessity
to take some time off to build up His faith so He could enter into God’s rest. I can picture Him stealing away by Himself to
fellowship alone with His Father to receive any last minute directions,
thoughts, comfort, reassurance and love.
That picture of
Jesus reminded me of a time a few years before we moved to Oklahoma when our
Senior Pastors were away on vacation or at a convention and I was left in
charge in their absence. In the weeks
leading up to the one Sunday when I was going to preach (That a great thing about being an Assistant Pastor... Since you don’t get to preach very much, you can
take a lot of time to prepare for the few sermons a year that you get to
deliver to the church!), I began to sense a special message that the Lord
wanted me to share. I had been taking
copious notes up until about a week before when I knew it was time to formulate
my thoughts into a clear and concise, enjoyable sermon.
Before I sat down
at my computer I felt the leading of the Lord to go outside and spend some time
alone, away from the hustle-bustle of the family and fellowship with the
Father. So I went into the backyard with
a notebook and bible and began to walk around the yard as I prayed. That special time provided the opportunity
for me to clear my head of all my worldly responsibilities and openly communicate
with my heavenly Father. He helped me to
define the points that He wanted brought forth on that day, the best examples
to use to help the congregation understand the lesson, and even reminded me of
a few funny life experiences from my past that I could share! When I finally went in and sat down at the
computer my mind and my hands just seemed to fly as I wrote out the outline for
the message.
I think that is
what happened on that Wednesday many years ago.
Jesus took the time to clear His mind of everything that had been going
on over the last three years and the last three days in particular and set His
heart to accomplish the plan that had been put in motion before the beginning
of time. When I looked at the events of
the following days leading up to Jesus’ crucifixion, I noticed that Jesus did
not teach anymore from that point on. He
was solely focused on what He was sent to do for you and me!
When is the last time
that you took an extended period of time to fellowship alone with your heavenly
Father? Do you remember how good it felt
to be all by yourself in His presence as you let go of the pressures of the
past and basked in His wisdom, comfort, reassurance and love? Maybe it is time to schedule a new kind of
vacation, one that is spent with the Creator of the universe. The One who “so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 NKJV) What a radical thought! Just the kind of idea that should be
considered during the days preceding Resurrection Sunday!
Have a wonderful
day! Stay in tune to His Word, and keep
asking yourself… “What am I expecting
today?”
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