The conference room was filled to capacity, nearly a thousand people were there to listen to several presenters, and I was one of them! Although I had given many presentations, this was the largest group to which I had ever presented. Worse, I knew there were several medical professors in attendance who were experts in the same topic on which I was speaking.
I spent weeks preparing and rehearsing every possible oddball question that may be hurled at me. Yet, I knew at some point, I would have to trust God that He allowed me to prepare to the best of my ability. Now, it was in His capable hands. Whether it is preparing for a major presentation, an examination, or an interview, we may spend hours in preparation and work ourselves into a frenzy over the “What if?” scenarios. What if I knew for over thirty years that a significant life event was about to occur? How would I prepare? Would I be pushed to utter exhaustion and simply give up?
Our Lord Jesus Christ is eternally God. He came to earth, born as a human child. At all times, He was both wholly God and Man. He knew that He was sent to redeem mankind for our sins. As He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, the evening before He was to be delivered to be executed, He knew what was about to happen. He would be captured, crucified, and tortured to death. All of the sins of the world would be thrust upon His broken body. For the first time in His life, He would experience separation from God. He knew this was going to happen for all of his human life of about thirty-three years. He knew this from the beginning of eternity when He was in Heaven as God, the Son. Innumerable years of preparation. It all came down to this moment. How did Jesus respond?
He went away again the second time and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if this cup may not pass away from Me, unless I drink it, Thy will be done.”
Matthew 26:42 (KJ21)
Jesus knew every possible, “What if?” scenario. Did He succumb to the pressure? Did He freeze? Did He give up? He resolutely responded with the most powerful words anyone can ever speak, “Thy will be done.”
Whatever difficult trial we may face, it will never compare to what Jesus Christ faced on the evening before He was crucified. Let us be encouraged by the courage and strength that Jesus demonstrated for us. For the eternity He spent preparing for it, He completely trusted God and allowed Him to carry out His will for His life. We can do the same.
Love and trust in the Lord; seek His will in your life.
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