Passage

Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.”

He took along Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to feel sorrow and distress.

Then he said to them, “My soul is sorrowful even to death. Remain here and keep watch with me.”He advanced a little and fell prostrate in prayer, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet, not as I will, but as you will.” When he returned to his disciples he found them asleep. He said to Peter, “So you could not keep watch with me for one hour?

Watch and pray that you may not undergo the test. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Withdrawing a second time, he prayed again, “My Father, if it is not possible that this cup pass without my drinking it, your will be done!”

Then he returned once more and found them asleep, for they could not keep their eyes open. He left them and withdrew again and prayed a third time, saying the same thing again. Then he returned to his disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? Behold, the hour is at hand when the Son of Man is to be handed over to sinners. Get up, let us go. Look, my betrayer is at hand.”

Matthew 26: 36-46

Today's Meditation

So you could not keep watch with me for one hour?

Our Lord is on his way to the garden; his heart is sorrowful even to death. Judas already crushed Jesus’ heart with his betrayal. Jesus has been in such a state of sorrow that he goes to pray to his Father and, in all confidence, asks his disciples to watch with him, or, in other words, to pray with him from far away.

As we read, they did not stay up and pray; they fell asleep. We noticed Jesus’s disappointment. He already knew the difficulty he was about to experience, and his friends could not go the extra mile and pray with him. It was definitely hurtful for him. He didn't receive reciprocal love from his disciples at that moment.

Now, those were his disciples who could not pray with him; in a way, they did not accompany him and basically left him alone. Have you and your spouse left Jesus alone? Have you forgotten through your day or throughout your week to be with him in prayer?

Is your marriage leaving Jesus alone?

When we, as a married couple, fall asleep in our spiritual life and in our daily prayer, we basically leave Jesus alone. We leave Jesus alone when we neglect to pray because there are “other things more important at the moment.” We leave Jesus alone when we might be praying, but we are just repeating words without any intentionality of the mind or heart. Jesus reminds us of a very important reality of who we are and what we must pay attention to: “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Whenever we abandon Jesus (by not praying), our flesh becomes weaker and weaker; it takes us to a spiritual state of numbness, and we become more fleshy, so we start committing venial sins more often and lose the remorse to the point that we don’t care to touch the ugly fire of mortal sin. When we take the road of leaving Jesus aside, our marriage will slowly deteriorate. The farther we are from Jesus, the farther we get from our spouse. As closer we get to Jesus, the closer we will be to our spouse. Let us not forget that we are united in the spirit through God. Every time we are living in a constant sinful pitfall, our relationship will be at its worst because sin rejects God’s grace to come to us and our marriage.

Spiritually awake!

Let us take this lent season as an opportunity to do the opposite of the disciples who fell asleep and left Jesus alone. Let us be spiritually awake. From now on, every day, pray intentionally with your heart and mind, so our marriage can stay closer to Jesus. 

Today's Questions

Have you both gone a week without praying together? What steps can you take to support both you and your spouse in being spiritually awake?

Today's Challenge

Intentionally pray today, do not just pray, but intentionally pray thinking about the Agony of our Lord.

Don't Forget

Pray together the HOLY ROSARY every day (sorrowful mysteries only)

Pray OVER EACH other every day

Let's Pray

O Jesus, through the superabundance of Your love, and in order to overcome our hardness of heart, You pour out torrents of graces over all those who reflect on Your most sacred sorrow in the Garden of Gethsemane, and who spread devotion to it. I pray to You, move my soul and my heart to think often, at least once a day, of Your most bitter Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, in order to be compassionate You and to be united with You as closely as possible.

O Blessed Jesus, You, who took upon Yourself the immense burden of our sins that night, and atoned for them fully; grant me the great grace of complete repentant love over my numerous sins, for which You sweat blood.

O Blessed Jesus, for the sake of Your most bitter struggle in the Garden of Gethsemane, grant me final victory over all temptations, especially over those to which I am most subjected.

O suffering Jesus, for the sake of Your unfathomable and indescribable agonies, during that night of betrayal, and of Your most bitter anguish of mind, enlighten me, so that I may recognize and fulfill Your will; grant that I may ponder continually on Your heart-wrenching struggle on how You emerged victoriously, in order to fulfill, not Your will, but the will of Your Father.

Be blessed, O Jesus, for all Your sighs on that holy night; and for the tears which You shed for us.

Be blessed, O Jesus, for Your sweat of blood and the terrible agony, which You suffered lovingly in coldest abandonment and in inscrutable loneliness.

Be blessed, O sweetest Jesus, filled with immeasurable bitterness, for the prayer which flowed in trembling agony from Your Heart, so truly human and divine.

Eternal Father, I offer You all the past, present, and future Masses together with the Blood of Christ shed in Agony in the Garden of Sorrow at Gethsemane.

Most Holy Trinity, grant that the knowledge and thereby the love, of the Agony of Jesus on the Mount of Olives will spread throughout the whole world.

Grant, O Jesus, that all who look lovingly at You on the Cross, will also remember Your immense Suffering on the Mount of Olives, that they will follow Your example, learn to pray devoutly and fight victoriously, so that, one day, they may be able to Glorify You eternally in Heaven. Amen.

Prayer by St. Padre Pio

Dedicate to Jesus one HOLY HOUR of Adoration per week