What Jesus Did! 'The Usual Place' — Luke 22:39-46

Jesus went to "the usual place," the Mount of Olives. There, he warned his disciples again about the temptation that was about to engulf them. Everything about those events is surreal, bizarre, and horrifying except one: Jesus was in his place of prayer. He had walked with the Father his entire ministry. Prayer had been his connecting link with his Father in heaven. In prayer, Jesus re-centered his sense of ministry, gained strength, rejoiced, and spoke honestly of his own struggles. So now, at the crucial moment in his life, he was prepared to face his awful test. For Jesus, surrendering to the Father in prayer wasn't some last-minute thing used to try to dodge his difficult trial. It was an extended conversation, a continuing walk with the Father to whom he had repeatedly submitted his will. Jesus could ask that the Father's will be done because he had asked it so often before in "the usual place." Do you have a time carved out in your day where you re-surrender your will to the Father? Do you have "the usual place" where you pledge your heart to God? It can be at your computer or with your mobile device as you take time each day to draw close to the Father and recommit your life to him. It can be in the quiet of the morning ... or the evening ... or at noon. The important thing is that we have "the usual place" where we meet God and say, "Father ... I want your will, not mine." When we do, we can be sure he hears us, sends his angels to attend to us, and works in our lives to bring us ultimately to his glory.