By Amy Schisler

“Jesus said to them, ‘You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?’ They replied, ‘We are able.'” ~ Mark 10:38-39

Oh, James and John, how I feel your humility. Jesus has just told you and the others the most important piece of news you need to hear. He is going up to Jerusalem to be killed. Yet you both have one thing on your minds, to sit at His right and left hands in His kingdom. To reprimand you, Jesus asks if you’re willing to face the same fate He will face, and you enthusiastically reply, “we are able.”

Really?

Were you even listening? Do you have any idea what Jesus just told you all? Or are you so busy plotting and scheming for power that you completely missed the narrative? How can you possibly stand there nodding and smiling if you truly understand what is happening? Are you really willing to drink of His chalice and die as He will? What must the others think of you right now?

So many times, I reply enthusiastically to the Lord, “Yes, I am able” without knowing what He is asking. I want to do His will, but as He said, “the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41). In humiliation, I must crawl back to the Lord and confess my failings and weaknesses. For all the times I say yes, there are times I fall short of fulfilling my promises.

Open Arms

Luckily for James, John, myself, and everyone else, “the Lord is merciful and gracious” (Psalm 103:8). He knows we will fail over and over, yet He greets us each time with open arms. Where would we be without the constant love and mercy of Jesus and our Father? No matter how many times we fail to do what we say or live up to our word, He is always there to help us start over again.

Prayer:

Dear, sweet Jesus, I am weak and sinful, but I wish to be strong and pure. Help me in my weakness to turn to Your open arms and seek your mercy. Amen.

Call to Action:

When you fail or fall, there is always hope. Seek the Lord in Confession, and hand over to Him your struggles. Allow Him to prepare you for what He has in mind for you, even to drink from the chalice He has poured out for you.

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