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Matthew, chapter 26, verse number 36. How many? Got something out of this prayerology series. You got some out of it. Matthew 26, verse 36 is where we're going to begin our reading. We're going to be ending this series on today. And it reads like this verse 36 says. Then Jesus went to his disciples, went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to them, sit here while I go over there and pray. And he took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him. And he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, my soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me. Going a little further. He fell with his face to the ground and prayed, my Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me yet not as I will, but as you will. I want to stop the reading of scripture there and tag this topic to this text. We're talking from this subject in our time together. Family. Very simple. I want to talk to you about garden prayers. Garden prayers. Clap your hands if you're ready and excited about God's word. I want to start this sermon with a statement that will hopefully serve as an anchor for every individual that is serious about their life's assignment. The statement is as follows. Every person that is passionate about pursuing their purpose will ultimately and eventually experience a garden season. A garden season family is where the pressure you are feeling is and the problem you are facing is because of the purpose you are chasing.
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A garden season is a season of life or a situation in life when
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the God who gives you a purpose is the same God who gives you a problem. What do you do when the problem you have is a result of a purpose you're chasing? The purpose you're chasing is a result of the purpose God gave you. What do you do when God is the problem? You can tell God on the devil, but who to you? Who do you talk to God about when you got to talk about God to God? A garden season is, ladies and gentlemen, a season where we recognize and realize
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when God, who is the author of
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our assignment, is the reason for our adversity.
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What do you do in these seasons?
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Jesus in this text offers some insight on what we should do in these seasons. Jesus teaches us that when you're dealing with a garden season, you must learn to pray. Garden. Garden prayers. What I'm attempting to articulate is seen in the pages of this passage here
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in the Gospel of Matthew. This text here in Matthew 26 exposes us to an experience Jesus has in a literal garden called the Garden of Gethsemane. And it is in this garden that we see in a unique way the humanity of Jesus. We find a Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Watch this family who is overwhelmed, agitated, irritated and anxious. I'm gonna say it one more time. Cause I know they're shaking your theological tree. Because we proclaim Christologically that Jesus is 100% human and 100% divine. But when we talk about him, we only talk about and teach from his divinity. And we ignore the lessons we can learn from his humanity. And in the Garden of Gethsemane, we see his humanity. And we see a Jesus who is stressed, irritated, agitated and anxious. He is so anxious emotionally, it's affecting him physically. When Luke, who wrote the Gospel of Luke, tells this story, Luke, who is a physician, gives us a detail that other Gospel writers don't give. Well, in the same way Luke says in Luke 22:44. And being in anguish. This is the word he uses to describe Jesus being in anguish. He prayed more earnestly. And his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. This is Jesus here, the waymaker.
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Jesus the burden bearer.
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Jesus the bridge over troubled water. Jesus the lawyer in the courtroom. Jesus the doctor in the sick room. Jesus the lily in the valley. The wheel in the middle of the wheel. The bright and morning star. This Jesus is so stressed, so anxious, in such anguish that his sweat is dropping from his body like it is great drops of blood. So if an immutable, omniscient, unchangeable, omnipotent. Jesus can be stressed, irritated, agitated and anxious. What makes you and I think. That we can't hit a season where we are stressed, irritated, agitated and anxious? He is dealing with the collision of three different challenges at the same time.
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And I know some of you know what it's like to deal with problems sequentially, one after the other.
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But what do you do when you're
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dealing with problems simultaneously? Am I talking to anybody that's ever felt like everything going wrong at the same time?
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Jesus here is dealing with this collision of conundrums at the same time. First of all, he's dealing with a conundrum emotionally because he is faced with the fact I'm dying tomorrow. This is the Thursday before his crucifixion on Friday. So I want you to think about the emotional rollercoaster you and I will be going through. If, you know, by this time tomorrow, I'm gone.
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Somebody say that's stressful. That's. That's stressful.
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He's not only dealing with an emotional conundrum, he's dealing with a relational conundrum. Because there's a gentleman named Judas who's a part of 12 men that Jesus spent three years mentoring, coaching, leading, pastoring, training and investing in. And Judas has betrayed him for 30 pieces of silver. And very often when we talk about Judas, it's almost if we assume that because Judas betrayal didn't stop Jesus purpose, that Judas betrayal didn't cause Jesus pain when two things can be true at the same time. It didn't stop me, but I felt it. Is there anybody honest in this section to say I bounced back from it, but I felt it and I recovered, But I felt it and I won anyway. But I felt it and I'm happy I won, but I'm still a little irritated. I'm still a little salty because I'm mad. I had to go through what I had to go through to get to where I am because you put me through it.
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Just because it didn't stop his purpose doesn't mean it didn't cause him pain. I won, but I'm hurt.
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I won, but I'm still upset. I won, but I still feel away.
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I feel away because. As generous as I was to you, Judas, Judas, I'm not saying you should betray anybody. I'm just saying if you were gonna betray somebody, what I find confusing is
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out of all the people you could betray, why.
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Why me? You know who Judas represents? You know who Judas represents? Do you know why Judas betrayed Jesus? Greed. He sold him out for 30 pieces of silver. So, Pastor, why do you say that's greed? It's greed. Because the Bible makes clear that Judas was the equivalent of Jesus. Treasurer, am I in the book? There's this instance that Jesus has with his experience, that Jesus has with his disciples. And there's this woman who brings this. This box, this box called the alabaster box, with this precious ointment. And she breaks it, and she uses the ointment as an expression of worship. And the Bible says she washes Jesus,
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wipes Jesus feet with. And the Bible says that Judah said this month this could have been taken, sold, and the money given to the poor. But the gospel writer says that Judas did not say that because he cared about the poor. He says Judas said that because he was the keeper of the money bag. And the writer says he used to help himself to what was in it. So he was an embezzler. So Jesus is like you stealing from me and that still ain't enough. I just washed your feet and that's not enough. I've let you learn from me for three years. I took you places you would have never got exposed to if it wasn't for me. You were on boats with me. You were taking trips with me. You saw stuff you would never see. You met people you would never met. You got opportunities you would have never had. And out of everybody you could have betrayed, you betrayed me. Because Judas represents the person in your life where it's never enough.
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So because. Because Jesus loved him deeply, he had to be wounded greatly. So he's dealing with the emotional ramifications of knowing I'mma die tomorrow. He's dealing with the relational ramifications of being betrayed by somebody he's been nothing but good to. And then he's dealing with the spiritual ramifications of giving a yes to God that's costing him more than he want to pay. And I know we talk in church about how disobedience is expensive, but at some point we got to have conversations about how obedience is expensive.
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When you start walking God's way, it's going to cost you some stuff. When you start handling God's business, it's
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going to cost you some stuff.
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When you start turning away from that which is ungodly, it's going to cost you some stuff. Obedience is expensive. Expensive, too. But obedience never costs you something. You can't afford to lose God.
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God Almighty.
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Did you hear what I just said? If your obedience costs you the relationship, if your obedience costs you the opportunity, you need to know that God never makes a request of you to give him something, and he gives you something inferior in exchange. He will not be out giving. You can't beat God's giving no matter how hard you try. Try.
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Okay, Jesus. They take that body, I'mma give you a better one.
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You lose one disciple, I'm going to give you millions and billions across the world.
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So he dealing with the emotional ramifications of knowing I'm dying tomorrow. He dealing with the relational ramifications of being betrayed by somebody he spent three years investing in. And he's dealing with the spiritual ramifications that come with being confronted with the expense of your. Yes, it's one thing to agree to pay it, it's another thing to write the check. It feel different. So all of this drives him to this garden called Gethsemane. And the Bible says when he gets to this garden, he is stressed. That's the way the Bible describes Him stressed, overwhelmed, irritated and anxious. He goes in that way. But when he comes out, the Bible says in verse 49, coming out at once, Judas said, greetings, Rabbi. And then Judas kissed him. Jesus replied, do what you came for, friend. Y' all caught it right here, this section. Okay. Jesus went in the garden overwhelmed and anxious.
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He came out of the garden, ran
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into the person that's responsible for putting
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him on the cross and said, go ahead, friend. He called his betrayer, friend.
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You're not a friend to me personally,
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but you're a friend to my purpose. Because you about to put me in the grave. But God's about to raise me up. And when God raises me up, he's
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gonna take me up. So he goes in the garden overwhelmed and anxious. He comes out of the garden confident and composed. Where you can look at your betrayer and say, hey, friend.
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He's in the garden overwhelmed and anxious. He comes out of the garden confident and composed. You got it. That's the sermon. We could. I can go play NCAA now. That's the sermon. He goes in the garden overwhelmed and anxious. He comes out of the garden confident and composed. What happened in the garden
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where he
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went in overwhelmed and anxious, but came out confident and composed. It was in the garden experience that he prayed. A garden prayer and a garden prayer family is a pressure driven prayer prayer that produces internal transformation before external intervention. What does this mean? A garden prayer isn't a prayer that changes the thing because this problem was attached to his purpose. So the only way to get out of this problem is to get out of purpose. This crisis, which was the crucifixion, is connected to his calling. So the only way to walk out of this crisis is to walk out of his calling.
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And I know we live particularly in charismatic and Pentecostal settings. We live in spaces where we're hearing you coming out and we're hearing breakthrough coming. We're hearing it won't be long now. But sometimes the word is, you're gonna
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be here a while. So the purpose of prayer now isn't to change it. The purpose of a garden prayer doesn't change it. The garden prayer changes me. So I can't. Did you hear what I just said? So I can handle this thing that God's not going to change.
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So I don't know about you, I want to know how to pray that kind of prayer. I said, I don't know about you, but I want to know how to pray that kind of prayer. What is it that makes up that kind of prayer? What Is it that constitutes that kind of prayer? What is it that this text teaches us that can aid and assist us in praying? Garden prayers when we in garden seasons. This text shows us three specific traits of garden prayers, that of a garden prayer that Jesus prayed that we need to implement into our life when we pray God in prayers. Here's the first trait. The first trait is this. Now, I got quiet the other two services on this, but I. I know where I am. Y' all going to help the bishop with this. All right, Here it is. The, The. The. The. The first trait is this. It's a trait of sincerity. Now, now, now, let me tell you what I mean when I say sincerity. Y' all ready for this? I mean, Notice I didn't just say practical honesty or situational honesty. Situation honesty about the situation. I said emotional honesty. It's one thing to be honest about the situation. This is what I'm. This is what I'm facing. It's another thing to be honest about my emotions. This is how it's affecting me. Why is it quiet?
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Yeah, I'm in the text. The Bible says. The Bible says in verse, but if
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I had a little time. If I had a little time.
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Give me, give me. Give me Matthew 26.
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Give me verse 36. Give me verse 36. I want you to see this. The Bible says verse 36.
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Then Jesus went with his disciples to
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a place called Gethsemane. And he said to the disciples, sit
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here while I go over there and pray.
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Am I reading the Bible?
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He said to his disciples, so at
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this point, Judas has betrayed him.
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So he's talking to 11 men. So he says, sit here while I go over there and pray.
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Am I.
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Am I in the book? Then in verse 37, though, he said, it says, he took Peter and the
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two sons of Zebedee.
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That's James and John. He took them along with him. He began to be sorrowful and troubled.
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Y' all missed it. Okay, verse 36.
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He went with his disciples, 11 men to a place called Gethsemane and said to them, sit here while I go over there and pray. Is that verse 36, verse 37. He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee. That's James and John along with him.
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Okay.
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All right, let's try it again. He went with his disciples, that's 11 men, to Gethsemane and told 11, y' all stay here while I go over there and I pray. Then he reached into the 11 men, told three men. Out of the 11, y' all come with me. Cause your purpose will take you to a place of pressure where you got to leave some people at a certain
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place
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and some of us get in trouble because you try to take the 11 to places you should only take the three. Y' all aren't talking to me. And so. And so misguided and misdirected empathy has you considering the feelings of the 11. A. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So you cannot be faithful to your father because you're considering the feelings of the 11. And so you're trying to take them places that they want to go but are not called to go. And if they're not called to go, they don't need to go. So sometimes you gotta let them stay and say, I will see you in a minute.
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So he takes the 3, doesn't take
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the 11, and doesn't feel an obligation
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to give an explanation.
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I don't have to explain to you
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why I'm not taking you to a place you're not entitled to be at.
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And people that are a part of your purpose will not take their placement personally.
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If you got to be in a certain place in my life. Okay, this.
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See, some of you are confused because you think people love you more than they do. I'm not saying they don't love you. What they love is proximity. And if there is an adjustment made with proximity, their response to the adjustment is an indication whether or not they really love you or whether or not they really love the proximity and what the proximity is doing for them. When they love you, they will prefer proximity, but won't pout when they don't get proximity. Because if I really love you, I want to know what's best for you. Y' all aren't talking to me. And this means. This means when you hadn't heard from them in a while or they hadn't heard from you in a while, they call you with curiosity, not with accusations. So they're calling you if they really care, they're calling you saying, is everything okay? Are you stressed? Are you under pressure? Do you need some help? If they're calling with accusation, they say, why you ain't called me?
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And why?
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You know, okay, let me. Let me go. I need somebody to give somebody high five and say, I'm busy. I'm busy. I'm trying to raise these kids. I'm busy. I'm trying to keep a roof over the head. I'm busy. I'm trying to steward my assignment. I'm busy. I'm trying to stay sane in the membrane. I'm Busy. I'm fighting for my life. I'm busy. I just had a baby. I hadn't had any sleep. I'm busy. I'm pregnant. My feet hurt. I'm busy. Are y' all okay?
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It's okay if people want to have it. It's dangerous when they pout if they don't get. Here. It is. So he takes the three to them, takes three with him because the text says, he takes Peter James on. And he says, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. And then he says to them, somebody say them. Who's the them? The three. My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Yet is Jesus talking to the point of death? I'm in anguish. I'm tripping. This is a lot. And he said it to them. Do you have a them? Because some stuff you saying to the
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11,
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you should be saying to the 3. Watch this. This isn't Jesus flesh. It's his humanity. Do you have a three? Do you have a three? Say, I'm tired, I'm stressed. I'm scared. I talk about. You guys hear me talk about one of my friends that passed away a while ago in 2019, and he was going through his second bout with a terminal illness, with an illness that ended up being terminal. And out of all the years we had been together, we'd done so much together, we worked together, we vacationed together. He was like a brother to me. One of the greatest moments to me that gave a revelation of how much he trusted me was when he looked at me the second time and said, bro, I'm scared. And I said, me too. Do you have anybody in your life that you can look at and say, I'm scared. I'm tired. I'm not okay today.
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Jesus did.
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So if Jesus can have a moment, you can't have a moment.
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Are y' all okay?
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Somebody's like, no, I'm not. And here's what I learned. The devil wants to use drama to create trauma, to kill your trust. So you don't trust your them. Because this is tough. Because it means the disciples had to keep what they saw in context. That's why Thomas couldn't go, you already doubting. You.
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You. You already a doubter.
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Now if I expose this part of me to somebody that's already you with
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me, but you a doubter,
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so you want to see stuff you can't handle.
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And Jesus is not engaging in anything sinful, but some people will mishandle the exposure of simple humanity.
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So the text says, he said it to them.
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Y' all good.
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I'm gonna take six more minutes. Here it is.
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And the text says, he not. He said it to them.
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And look at this. He says, my soul is exceedingly sorrowful to the point of death. Okay, let me just show you one more thing. I promise I'm moving on. Stay here and watch with me. Don't leave me. What did he say? He say, stay. Stay here. He wants support. The reason I know he won't support is because he prays, right? Then he goes out the garden and they sleep. And so now his emotional stress is creating relational irritability. So he's not sinful, but he's snappy. Could you not watch with me one hour?
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Come on. Here. Don't sanitize the text. How you think the man that turned over tables in the temple said that?
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Guys, guys, guys, guys. Support. You can't fix this, but just be here.
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Oh, my God.
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I don't have time to deal with this, Tario. But this is what we call ministry of presence. And I wish Christians would get this. We would stop talking so much. Sometimes your ministry is be there. Because if not, we start giving explanations. It's like, bro, you shouldn't have.
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Even the Lord.
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I don't. I met a friend.
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The Lord took her to a better place. Leave me alone. This is my mama. Leave me alone. This is my spouse. Leave me alone. This is my grandmother. Just be here. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me.
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Emmanuel.
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God with us.
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Sometimes the ministry is just presence. You don't have to have an answer.
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Just be there. You don't have to have a solution. Just be there. You don't have to solve the problem. Sometimes the ministry is present, So he
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is honest with them. But I want you to see what happens. In verse number 39, he says, going a little further, he fell on his face to the ground and prayed, my Father, if it's possible, may this cup be taken from me. I got to go, but I need to show you one more thing. Okay. Here's what he's doing with his disciples. He's engaging in what's called strategic vulnerability. He's not being emotionally reckless and bleeding all over the place, but he's engaging in strategic vulnerability. I want you to see something. Strategic vulnerability is the intentional purpose, disclosure of your interior reality to the right people in the right moment for the right season. And many people are trying to go through garden seasons without any vulnerability and without strategic vulnerability. Then you don't get intercession. Without strategic vulnerability, you don't get support. So now you have illogical agitation with people that are in your relational proximity because you expect them to know something you're not telling them. You should know me enough to know. I don't know. Because some of you don't present what you carry.
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You so strong.
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I don't know.
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You weak, right? Right now you're so composed. I don't know. You're falling apart. Y' all aren't talking to. So how am I supposed to know you're falling apart at the seams when you're always so composed.
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You got it.
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You always seem like you got it. So how am I supposed to know if you don't have it?
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If you're not strategically vulnerable with me and saying, my soul is exceedingly sorrowful unto death. Because God will speak to me about the things you can't share, not the things you won't share. Because part of the enemy of strategic vulnerability is pride. Because Jesus did not allow how he thought he would be seen by those he has influence with to stop him from being strategically vulnerable with them. So here's what he does. I'm almost done. Here's what he does after he talks to them. He talks to God. So what he felt in verse 37 is what he said to the disciples in verse 38. It becomes what he prays for. In verse 39, it's emotionally honest prayer. Father, if it's possible, remove this cup from me. He's talking about this cup of suffering. He basically said, I don't want to do this no more. Did you hear what I just said? He said, I know I said I wanted to do this and you sent me from heaven. But now, have you ever.
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Been in a season where you felt like, I don't.
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I don't want to do this no more. It's an emotionally honest prayer. It's sincere. He's not editing his emotions. Emotionally honest prayer doesn't just pray about the issue. It prays about the emotional condition the issue is creating in me. It doesn't just pray about the problem. It prays about what the problem is doing to me. And praying with emotional honesty is uniquely impactful because it not only addresses the issue, it addresses the emotional impact the issue is having on you.
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And many people pray about their situation,
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but don't pray, pray about what the
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situation is doing to them. Therefore, when the situation has changed, the damage that the situation did to them still remains. And this is what makes emotionally honest
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prayer so important it is strategic psycho
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spiritual warfare because it is essentially a
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form of spiritual emotional regulation.
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Because emotions that are unexpressed don't stay contained to your soul.
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They migrate and they show up in
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your decisions, in your body and in your relationships.
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An emotionally honest prayer is a prayer like what David prayed in Psalms 13. When he says, how long, Lord? You say, my breakthrough come. How long will you forget me forever? I feel forgotten.
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How long will you hide your face from me?
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I don't feel like you see me. How long must I wrestle with my thoughts day after day and have sorrow in my heart?
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How long will my enemy triumph over me?
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Me?
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I know you say I'm more than
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a conqueror, but I'm losing. I'm trying to fix my attitude.
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I'm losing.
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I'm trying to fix my relationships. I'm losing. I got some habits I'm trying to break. I'm losing. Have you ever gone to God and said, I'm losing? When Luke tells his story, though, he says when Jesus gets real, he gets strengthened. When Luke tells this story, he says, in Luke 22:43, an angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. He got strong when he got real. Because God doesn't help who you pretend to be. When you're in a garden season, you gotta pray a garden prayer. That's sincerity. Number two. I'm dontario number two. A garden prayer is characterized by submission. Notice what he says. If it's possible, remove this cup from me. Not as I will, but you, but as. As you will. Now put the word submission back up there, please. I want the saints to see this. Now. I want you to see a synthesis of kind of two parts. I want you to see sub. That means below, right mission. That's what submission means. It means to get below God's mission. It literally means to get under. It is not a devaluing, it is not a subjugation. And I'm not going to talk about this, but even in the context of relationships, it is whatever. It's. It's getting under a mission. Not a person, But the person has a responsibility to carry out a mission. And when you get underneath that person, you're saying, I'm not going to get
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in the way of you carrying out the mission that God has given you for us.
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So if.
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If I have a mission to provide and to protect from my home, then those in my home should get underneath that mission and say, when I say, baby, when you get there, text me. Don't fight me about that. Text me. Cuz my job is to make sure you're provided for and protected. That's my mission. You grown. I'm not controlling you. But God gave me a mission.
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I don't hear. I need.
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I need to hear more amens than that, Right? See,
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biblical submission. I want you to see. Jesus said, if it's possible, move this cup from me. So here's what he says, what he wants. He's not suppressing his want.
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He's admitting, this is what I want.
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And we need to stop lying to God saying we don't want stuff we want. Lord, I don't want this opportunity that. Yes, you do. He expressed desire without demanding compliance.
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He says, I'm gonna be honest about what I want, but I trust you
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enough to submit to what you want.
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Submission acknowledges desire, but then yields to a higher authority.
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And Jesus models that. Biblical submission is to be completely honest about what you want and completely surrender to what God decides.
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See, submission isn't what happens when you give up. Submission is what happens when you grow up.
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It is to say, father, I'm going to ask you for what I want, but I am going to submit to what you decide. I'm going to express my desire, but I'm not going to demand compliance. Because your track record says you always choose what's best for me. So not my will, not my will.
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It's not always what I want. And when I'm willing to give up
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a want, that becomes worship. Garden prayer is sincerity. Garden prayer is submission. Garden prayer, y'. All all right? God in prayer requires synergy. God in human form acts three frail, imperfect men, some who had ambition issues. Peter had just issues of impulsivity. But he asked three imperfect men to pray with him. He's modeling for us the power, partnership and prayer synergy. That the power of all of us is greater than the power of any one of us. That when two or three come together, touching and agreeing concerning anything, there I am in the midst. One can chase a thousand. Two puts ten thousand to flight. Y' all catching this. He is modeling that for us. But here's what happened when he would
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go out of the garden.
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The people that were supposed to be praying were sleeping. And just like them current disciples, we sleep on the power of corporate people prayer. We sleeping on the power of this.
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Why?
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Because the devil uses trauma, uses drama to produce trauma and uses trauma. Watch this. To impact our relational operating system. Notice I didn't say our relational wiring. I said our relational operating system. The way we operate relationally. That's not how you're born. That's how you built it is when your experiences and your instincts and your assumptions impact the way you show up in relationships. And for some of us, it creates codependence. And when there's codependence, an individual is saying, I can't without you. And for some of us, it creates hyper independence. And hyper independence says, I don't need you. But third way is interdependence, and that is, I can without you, but I'm better with you. You.
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And this relational wiring shows up in
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the way we approach prayer. So there are no invitations for other people to be invited into adding their faith to mine regarding my situation through prayer. The disciples didn't ask Jesus to pray for him. He asked them, Wow. They didn't ask him. He asked them. He invited them into prayer with him. Because if Jesus couldn't handle a garden season by himself, why are you trying to handle yours by yourself? And when I say the three, I don't mean three people literally could be one, but I mean what that. What that core, that what they call the. What they call inner circle, what that inner circle represents. Are you here? I said, are you here? I said, are you here? Family, Y'. All. Y' all, like, listen, I'm thinking right now. Leave me alone, Bishop. Some of you in a garden season right now, and you gotta have garden prayers. Emotional honesty, where I'm praying not just about the problem, but what the problem is doing to me. Submission, where I'm honest about what I want, but I yield to what he wants. And synergy, where I put aside my pride and I invite other people into the process of partnering with me in prayer to help me handle this boy, if I had time, Chris. I couldn't even deal with the watch and pray because he told him, watch too. And some of us need people watch for me. But sometimes I need to tell you where I am so you can watch me. I'm weak. Watch me.
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I'm mad.
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Watch me. Y' all not talking. You're tempted to text somebody back, watch me.
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Lonely.
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Watch me. How much could we avoid if we would have told somebody, I'm frustrated. Watch me. I'm stressed right now. Watch me. And we done. I'm getting ready to pray. And I'm praying that God sends someone into our life or shows you who is already in your life that you can invite into your garden season. You can't keep doing this by yourself. Jesus had a moment. You think you're not going to have moments. And away with this presentation of Christianity that ignores even the humanity of Jesus. He had a moment. Is what I sense God doing. What I sense the Holy Spirit doing, number one, is spiritual excavation. And he is digging deep into the recesses of your soul, and he is uncovering some things that happen with people that's showing up in your relationship with God. Your people trust issues are showing up with him. So all you know how to do is bring half of yourself to a relationship because you never had a human one where you could bring all of you. So you got a relational orientation of half showing up. And it's showing up in your prayer life. So you're emotionally editing your prayers. You scared to say. You mad. You scared to say you're struggling. And there's some things you don't have because you don't ask. I sense that. I sense the Lord showing some of you that. And secondly, the second thing I sense is I sense the Holy Spirit actually kind of doing a supernatural work in terms of some soul wounds that some of you are carrying. Not a supernatural work in the sense that he is completely eradicating the impact of those wounds, but he is healing you enough so that you become free to actually trust him the way he deserves to be trusted. Boy, if I had time. So I want to pray specifically for that today. I sense the Holy Spirit doing those two things in the hearts of his people. It's almost like I just saw also, like a. A wrestling match where the Holy Spirit is trying to bend your will into submission. So he's addressing a degree of internal rebellion because you just committed to have it your way. You don't own your life. You are bought with a price. It's not yours. But his plans for you. Look at me. Are way better than your plans for you yourself. You can't outrun this. He's going to chase you down. Holy Spirit, thank you for giving us a glimpse into what you're doing in the hearts of your people. And I pray now in the language of antiquity, that you would have your way in the name of Jesus. I thank you for uncovering and exposing how the issues that we've experienced with people have impacted our ability to show up fully before you. I thank you for freedom from that. We're in a season where we need a quick work. Do this supernaturally and quickly. In the name of the Lord Jesus and Father, for those that are wrestling with your will, I pray that your Holy Spirit, Great God Nisi, that you would give them victory over them. And we say we yield and we surrender. Now bless and keep us cause your face of favor to shine upon us. Be gracious to us, protect us, provide for us, and grant us peace. This is my prayer for your life. In Jesus name, Amen. Go in peace. The Lord be with you.
B
It.
Date: March 23, 2026
In this concluding installment of the "Prayerology" series, Pastor Dharius Daniels explores what he calls "garden prayers"—those deep, pressure-driven prayers made during the most challenging "garden seasons" of life. Anchored in Matthew 26:36–46 (Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane), Pastor Daniels unpacks the emotional, relational, and spiritual dimensions of Jesus' anguished prayer, offering practical insights on how to pray when your life’s purpose brings you pain. He emphasizes authenticity, surrender, and the need for supportive relationships, challenging listeners to grow in both honesty and faith during their own garden moments.
Pastor Daniels identifies three qualities in Jesus’ prayer that listeners should emulate:
“You can’t keep doing this by yourself. Jesus had a moment. You think you’re not going to have moments? … Praying that God sends someone into our life or shows you who is already in your life that you can invite into your garden season.” (43:25)