Living water in the desert

“So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.” – Matthew 26:44

Sometimes we might ask the question, “Am I allowed to pray what I really feel and think?” The truth is that God already knows our hearts and so there is no point in hiding what we are really going through from Him. However, we should recognize that our God does deserve respect and honor. We can trust Him. Jesus modeled prayer for us in multiple ways in Scripture. One particularly beautiful example is His prayers in the garden of Gethsemane before He was arrested.

“So he left them and went away once more…"

Jesus knew that he wanted the support of His friends, but He also realized that He needed to have intimacy and space as He prayed personally to the Father. Sometimes in life we need to pray with others, but other times we need to pray alone with our God and ask others to advocate and intercede on our behalf in their own times of prayer. There is still a communal aspect of prayer, but it is also very personal to Jesus and should be to us as well.

Do you try to “Get away” and pray? This might look like waking up before the kids or talking to God after they go to sleep. You might have a war room in your closet. You could have a special route you like to walk and talk to God on. You may love to pray while you commute to work. Whatever that looks like for you, or you hope it looks like in the future, keep fighting for that time to be focused in prayer.

“And prayed the third time…”

Jesus was no stranger to the concept found in Luke 18:1-8 with the persistent widow or the concept found in Matthew 7:7-8 to keep asking and seeking. Jesus was not ashamed or afraid to go back to God and pray a third time. He knew the value of continuous intercession. Notice that we can pray consistently for others, but sometimes, we do this over our own lives. 

This is not selfish, this is good to put on the armor of God, to pray for direction, and to submit ourselves under Christ’s authority while sharing our greatest desires and needs.

“Saying the same thing…"

The Bible makes it clear that Jesus repeated the same prayer to the Father. He went before Him and made His request three times, and it was always the same. Matthew 26:36b says, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

Why would Jesus, who knew His purpose and mission for coming to earth and knew that He had to die for our sins and would raise Himself back to life, pray this prayer? Do you also find it strange that He would be praying for the exact opposite of what He knew and had told His disciples was coming? Would that not be a waste of time? This makes us ponder our own prayers to God. Have you ever felt like what you were praying about was a waste of time? Or did you feel as if you were praying the same prayer over and over again? Did it seem like your words hit the ceiling instead of the ears of the Father in heaven?

I believe Jesus prayed this prayer to show us that even if our outcomes are not a “yes” from the Lord, our time spent communicating our hearts to God is significant. Prayer bonds us to God, reaffirms our trust in Him, and allows us to have a place to share about our circumstances. Even if we feel like we keep going to the Lord with the same prayer requests and the same concerns, we can remember that Jesus did this. He did not shy away from telling His heart to His Father (and He knew the outcome). There is value in prayer.