Climb
“Jesus went up to the mountain to pray,”
I imagine Him, Jesus, climbing up the mountain. I imagine Jesus pressing towards the Father. I imagine Him climbing away from the disciples and the crowds and the madness of His life - climbing up. Up and up and up - toward the One who really matters. I imagine Him climbing up towards His Father. Legs working a little harder, heart beating a little stronger, breath coming a little quicker - I imagine Jesus exerting Himself.
And, reaching the summit, He smiles a little smile. And, feeling that runner’s high, He finds a quiet place to rest at the top and catch His breath. I imagine He looks out over His Father’s creation and sighs - a little bit free-er from the exertion. I imagine His climb opens Him up a little - the way that exercise opens me up a little.
Jesus puts the effort in.
Jesus climbs the mountain and puts the effort in to be alone with the Father. He presses, He exerts to get His time alone with God.
Do I press? Do I reach the way Jesus did? I doubt Jesus would be the type to snooze His alarm clock when it was waking Him up for prayer. Not like me. All too often, I’m too tired or too lazy to get up for prayer.
All too often, I’m too selfish to prioritize prayer.
I tell myself I’ll make time for prayer later in the day, that I’ll get to it. And sometimes I’m faithful to that - but sometimes I’m not. Either way, if I’m not in my prayer chair first thing in the morning, my day is not as peaceful, as free, or as Spirit-led as I really want it to be. If I’m not climbing and pressing towards the Father, my day isn’t going to go as well.
I’m so oblivious and so proud. I honestly think I can start my day without Him, which is laughable. I need Him. Desperately. All the time. I need Him all day, every day. I need His wisdom, His guidance, His love, His acceptance. I need prayer first thing.
I can’t afford to start my day any other way.
The truth is: I need Him more than I need sleep. I need Him more than I need food. I need Him more than I need a run. I need Him more than I need my friends. I need Him more than I need a boyfriend/fiance/husband. I need Him more than anything. I need Him more than everything.
And Jesus knows that, He knew that. He never forgot. And He showed us how to live that way. Jesus didn’t just come to save us, to die for us, and redeem us. He also came to teach us.
Jesus came to show us a new way.
Jesus came because God saw that we needed help. We needed an example to look to. And so, Jesus came. Jesus never forgot to put the Father first. He came to teach us how to live connected to the Father.
I want that. And I know you want that. You wouldn’t be reading this if you didn’t. You love Him, and if you didn’t, you wouldn’t be here. So go climb the mountain and sink into His love; get up and go find Him. For me, climbing the mountain means climbing out of bed to start my day with Him. It might be different for you. But whatever your mountain is - climb it.
Jesus,
Thank You for showing us how to stay connected to the Father. Thank You for demonstrating what it means to put the Father first. Thank You for not only saving us, but also for teaching us a new way.
Jesus, please show us, once again, how to be like You. Teach us how to pray. Teach us how to come to the Father. Teach us how to put Him first - before anything and everything else.
Father,
We love You. Help us to live that way. Help us to choose You even when it’s hard. Help us to show us how much we love You through the choices we make.
We love You. Amen.