📖 “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”
Matthew 26:39
There are moments when life presses so heavily on the chest that breath itself becomes a prayer. Seasons when the weight isn’t just emotional — it’s existential. When sorrow spills into the soul’s deepest places and whispers, “You won’t survive this one.”
I’ve lived through those seasons.
Not once. But many times.
And I’ve cried out words I never thought would leave my lips — “Lord, I don’t want to do this anymore. It’s too much. Let me go.”I know what it’s like to wake up and wish you hadn’t.
And yet… I also know what it’s like to be carried when I couldn’t walk, to be kept when I had no strength to stay. To encounter the whisper of God in the dark — not always loud, but always there.
Even Jesus — our gentle Redeemer — tasted this depth of sorrow.
📖 “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death.” — Matthew 26:38 (NKJV)📖 “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.” — Matthew 26:39 (NKJV)
He who raised the dead also sat in the garden with tears and blood and anguish. He didn’t pretend. He didn’t suppress. He asked if there could be another way but He also surrendered — not to pain, but to purpose. Not to despair, but to divine will.
God does sometimes allow things we couldn’t bear in our own strength — not to destroy us, but to draw us nearer. Because when we stop trying to manage it all alone and lean fully into His strength, we will overcome. Not because we are strong, but because He is.
Paul, too, came to this place of surrender:
📖 “We were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure, and we thought we would never live through it… But as a result, we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely only on God, who raises the dead.” — 2 Corinthians 1:8–9 (NLT)
Beloved, if you’ve ever felt like the crushing would be your end — you’re not alone. But the breaking didn’t destroy you. The sorrow didn’t swallow you whole. You’re still here and that’s not weakness. That’s testimony.
You were never meant to bear it alone and the One who walked through Gethsemane walks with you still.
Reflection:
When have I felt crushed beyond what I could endure? What kept me going? 🤔
Where have I been trying to carry things in my own strength? 🤔
What would it look like today to fully depend on God to walk me through it? 🤔
Life Application:
Affirmation:
Creative Prompt:
Take a moment to reflect on a time you felt utterly overwhelmed. Paint, write, or sketch it. Then — in a new layer — depict God’s presence in that place. Use light, gold, or a single word of truth as a symbol of His nearness.
Closing Prayer:
Jesus, thank You for showing me that even You were overwhelmed. That sorrow and surrender can live in the same breath. When life feels too heavy to carry, remind me I’m not meant to carry it alone. Teach me to lean into You, to stop striving in my strength, and to trust in the God who raises the dead. You are my rescue. My strength. My peace in the crushing.
In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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