When Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane, He experienced many feelings that we too feel in our lives.

Mark 14:33-34
Jesus was deeply distressed and troubled in the garden of Gethsemane. His soul was overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. When He said this, He was still alive. But His words reflected the pain in his heart. Jesus here was 100% man and also 100% God. Because He was still man, He had weaknesses, and therefore Jesus had to go and pray.

On earth, we too experience similar things. When we feel so sorrowful that our heart cannot endure this pain, remember that you are experiencing what Jesus felt. Maybe you are dealing with illnesses, or times in your life when things are not smooth-sailing, or when people hurt us and betray us. Full of fear and sorrow, even to death - Jesus felt this. When we do not even know what would happen next…how do we get out of these feelings?

Hebrews 4:15 tells us Jesus went through the same things, because He was tempted in every way as we are, and so Jesus can empathise with us. He was once a man for 33 years, and He had experienced all the joys and bitterness of this world. Yet he did not sin. when Jesus was tempted by the devil in the wilderness, He overcame by the word of God. When we meet with troubles and trials, do not tell yourself that Jesus cannot understand. Because Jesus can fully empathise with us. Come boldly to the throne of God! Jesus is our good friend. There is no burden He cannot bear for us. Are you willing to tell them to Jesus?

Mark 14:37-40
In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was solitary. There were people around him, many disciples. But when he faced death and He could not bear it anymore, He needed prayer. And so He prayed. But none of His disciples prayed with Him. They all slept. They were not unwilling, otherwise why would they accompany Jesus? But they were weak. Jesus loved His disciples, His companions and friends these three years. But he could not gain from them the strength and care he needed.

Sometimes, in our heart, we carry a lot of pain, struggle and sadness. But we cannot and share this with anyone else, and it seems that nobody can understand. And we have to bear this burden alone. Does this mean no one loves us? No. Even those who love us and care for us will have moments where they must rest. In such moments, we turn to Jesus in prayer.

The speaker’s sister has lung cancer and there was a period of time she coughed a lot at night. Her husband loves her greatly and prays very much for her. But at night she cannot sleep well because she coughs greatly. And in these moments the loneliness is great, because her husband also cannot be there with her entirely since he too must rest. She could only turn to God in prayer, and cry out to him; it would often be that in prayer she falls asleep.

What do we need to go through this difficult time?

Luke 22:43
“Then an angel appeared to him from heaven, strengthening Him.”

In our sorrow and loneliness, when we are most helpless, sometimes we cannot resolve our difficulties immediately. This is a fact. What we need is strength, so that we would not lose our faith because of what we are going through, to overcome it and walk out of it. This was the case with Jesus.

Luke 22:44
“and being in agony, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like great drops of blood falling to the ground.”

Sometimes we are so weak that we do not want to pray; we do not have the strength to pray. but there is no other way but prayer. If we were to give up, nothing will be solved. Jesus was so sorrowful and He felt like dying. But when He met with such a difficult time, He did not allow the situation to cause Him to weaken. On the contrary, where He ought to stumble, He gained strength. What was Jesus’ success formula? It was not through His disciples, not through the prayers of the disciples, but His own prayer. He prayed so earnestly His sweat was like great drops of blood. Have we ever prayed till we have a pool of water around us? Or till our clothing is soaked through with perspiration?

Even when we feel all alone, do not be fixated on these feelings or on your environment. Learn from Jesus. Enter into your own Garden of Gethsemane. Pray with your hearts. In these prayers, despite your loneliness and sorrow, you will understand the will of God, and you will find strength to do the will of God.