Garden of Gethsemane (photo: Kate McDonald)
Gethsemane
Matthew 26:36-38 (NIV)
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.”
Song
Stay with me,
remain here with me,
watch and pray,
watch and pray
Matthew 26:39-44 (NIV)
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. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”
When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.
Prayer giving thanks for the oil
Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation.
Through your goodness we have this oil to offer,
fruit of the olive tree and work of human hands,
serving the needs of countless people through the centuries,
giving light and health and healing;
may the light of your Son crushed in agony
under the olives of Gethsemane
likewise serve the everlasting comfort and light and joy
of your people everywhere.
Amen.
Matthew 26:45-46 (NIV)
Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour has come, and the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”
Prayer:
A Procession of Prayers: Meditations and Prayers from Around the World by John Carden, p. 183