And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” (Mark 10:35-37)
But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:43-45)
It really stood out to me today how comfortable Jesus’ disciples were with him. For James and John to be able to ask such a self-centered request not only exposed their immaturity, but it also demonstrated something of what it was like to spend so much time with our Savior. They felt safe to ask him such a thing even though they had no clue what they needed to learn.
Because this is the most “real and personal” picture of prayer (talking to Jesus in person), it calls us to clarify the difference between pendulum prayers that swing from one extreme to another and plumbline prayers that are always expressing “truth in love” from the heart of “spirit and truth” worshipers.
The way Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane is the most amazing demonstration of how we can pray earnestly about personal experiences we are going through while also submitting our thoughts and feelings to God’s will.
In fact, what hit me the most in James and John’s request was that it had the sense of a teenager who imagines they know better than their parents what they need and so they are quite adamant that it needs to be done their way (it also sounds like toddlers who think everything is about them, but I’m giving the brothers the benefit of the doubt).
I have found the Psalms to be a very good source of prayer-examples about how to pour out our hearts to God about everything we are going through, telling him everything we need to get out about what we think and feel, but then submitting it all to the will of God and praising him for whatever he chooses to do with us.
In Psalm 73, Asaph gives his testimony of how close he came to stumbling because he fell into the trap of envying the wicked for how much better their lives seem to go than for those who pursue righteousness. He even admitted that “When my soul was embittered, when I was pricked in heart, I was brutish and ignorant; I was like a beast toward you” (Psalm 73:21-22).
But after pouring out his heart in “the sanctuary of God” (vs 17), Asaph remembered what was ahead for the wicked and reminded himself what was ahead for him on the path of truth and righteousness. And so he praised God, “Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (vss 25-26).
Today’s word from God is to bring all our requests to him, not in a “would you do things my way” kind of praying, but in a humble expression of our needs with humble submission to his will.
After all, Father knows best, and we can only be like our Savior if we want “not my will, but yours be done”.
© 2024 Monte Vigh ~ Box 517, Merritt, BC, V1K 1B8
Email: in2freedom@gmail.com
Unless otherwise noted, Scriptures are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.)
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