Day 5: Watchfulness and Prayer
“Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41).
Heavenly Father, in You we find safety and shelter, for, Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty (Psalm 91:1). In Your presence we find rest, and peace, and the strength to resist temptation.
We remember the charge from the apostle James, Submit yourselves... to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and He will come near to you (James 4:7-8). The Lord Jesus, too, gave specific instructions about intercepting temptation. He charged the disciples multiple times to "watch and pray." Instead they kept falling asleep (Matthew 26:37-41).
We have witnessed through Your word, the struggles and the failures they experienced for want of watchfulness and prayer. They completely unraveled in a time of deep crisis—with a successive chain of poor decisions and unwise responses—culminating in their betrayal and abandonment of the Lord Jesus.
Lord, just like the disciples, we do not know what is ahead, but You know all things. You know the tests, the difficulties, the dangers up ahead. And You desire that we prepare in watchfulness and prayer.
The Lord Jesus has told us, "In this world you will have trouble" (John 16:33). He spoke of a time when there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again (Matthew 24:21).
We do not know whether we will be living in those times. But we know from living through the recent pandemic that the stresses, the difficulties, and the tensions of uncertain times create great strain and trauma.
Other traumas may be yet to come. O help us to be prepared in watchfulness and prayer. Help us to be alert and of sober mind, so we are not devoured by temptation (1 Peter 5:8), or consumed by fear, by worry, or by distress.
Help us Lord to be wise and vigilant so we do not unravel in crisis—so that we do not flounder through a successive chain of poor decisions and unwise responses—so that we do not betray our Lord or abandon our faith.
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