Rise, Let Us Go!

Mom had a bad day on Tuesday. She just wanted to sit and cry and be alone. She was in pain and frustrated from her circumstances. I think seeing the long road ahead once again got her down. I hate these moments when I hear her hurting and know I am too far away to help. That all I can do is listen to her weeping on the phone and know that I can only provide my words as comfort. Sometimes we don't want or need words, we just want comfort. And even in the case with Mom, she just wanted to be alone. Something she hasn't been able to have since the accident, mainly due to her reliance on others for her basic needs.

In the same way, sometimes I have bad days with Jesus. I have knowingly sinned or disappointed Him with my actions. I have "fallen asleep" on the job so to speak. Luckily, we have the disciples to empathize with or hopefully learn from. In Christ's greatest hour of need, right before his betrayal, he went to pray. He asked his friends to pray with Him and what did they do...they fell asleep!

I think in my "younger" days as a new Christian I read this thinking, I would never fall asleep on Jesus. Yet now I see more and more in my every day life that I am constantly "falling asleep" on Jesus and having some "bad days." The beauty is that He says to them, "Rise, let us go!" He awakes them, does not chastise them but moves steadily towards the next phase in the journey.

So for my own spiritual life, Jesus says to me, "Emily, rise, let us go on and move from this place of despair, sin and depression." For my Mom Jesus also says, "Rise, let us go to the next day of healing!"

He does not allow us to wallow in our misery nor does he want us to-we have jobs to do...let us go!

Matthew 26:45-46a (New International Version)

45Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour is near, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46Rise, let us go!

Mom felt much better on Wednesday! I did too!