Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? (John 12:27)
Recently, more and more videos have gone viral on social media showing men fighting on the course. Tensions are running high, and it should be no surprise that golfers can flare up in anger, even at the finest clubs.
Is your soul troubled? Golf allows for a lot of time with people. Relationships can break down when people are together over long periods, and souls are left troubled.
Friends disagree. Pride divides. Club members are at odds. Souls are troubled.
Marriages struggle. Churches split. Governments feud. Souls are troubled.
Jesus found himself wanting for words when his soul was troubled. In his darkest hour, he prays, “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour?’”
When our souls are troubled, we pray less and talk more. We talk a lot. We talk to others. We talk to ourselves. Our talk is often excited, angry, and full of complaints. We defend ourselves. We justify. We indict others. We assign a motive. We detest. We even hate.
When Jesus finds his soul deeply troubled, and in anguish, he talks less and prays more. He prays earnestly. His prayer is one of petition and surrender. He asks for help and then surrenders his expectations, desires, and, finally, his will. He surrenders everything unto death. He doesn’t talk endlessly, but he dies. He dies to himself and the world for the sake of the world.
Jesus manages his troubled soul with this foundational principle: out of death comes life. Jesus explains, “I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.”
The principle that out of death comes life is all around us. A pregnant mother sacrifices her body so her baby will thrive. A father labors a lifetime to give his children opportunities. The Greatest Generation dies so that future generations might be free. Jesus died so that we might be born into a new life.
Is your soul troubled? Talk to people less. Pray. Pray earnestly. Pray that God will be weightier and more present in your circumstances. Pray that God will be glorified. As you pray, ask what you’re to surrender. Is it ego? Comfort? Control? The need to win? Die so that those around you may live peacefully and flourish.
And Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me. “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it and will glorify it again.”
Prayer: Not my will, but yours, Lord, for your glory and the sake of others.