"And when He returned, He found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him" (Mark 14:40).
How many times has a friend come to you for help and her problem was so big, so complicated, so out of your realm, that you didn't know what to answer her?
Been there, done that, bought the t-shirt. Are you like me? As the panic of my helplessness rises, I end up mumbling either, "I'll pray for you," or, "you really should talk to someone about this."
While we do need to pray for each other, we are missing a huge opportunity to fulfill Jesus' invitation to love one another when we use that response to get out of the conversation. And, while it may indeed be helpful to talk with a professional, we are also missing out when we recommend professional help to be relieved of an uncomfortable exchange.
In the Garden of Gethsemane, when Jesus got up from His knees and staggered over to His disciples for help, was He looking for them to solve His problem, or was He looking for connection?
"Terrible was the temptation to let the human race bear the consequences of its own guilt, while He stood innocent before God. If He could only know that His disciples understood and appreciated this, He would be strengthened" (The Desire of Ages, page 688).
When a friend comes to you for help, chances are she is not looking for you to solve her problem. She likely wants to be understood and appreciated. She is likely looking for connection. So there is no need for evasive maneuvers.
Lord, please begin changing my focus from solving the problem to connecting with the person.
Next time we'll look at how to deeply and richly connect with one another.
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