We are now down to four letters to focus on. The next letter I want to mention is the letter “W” and it stands for the word “watch”. As Christians, if we are going to draw closer to God, and if we are going to encourage others, we need to make sure we are “watching” out for ourselves and making sure we are living lives that are pleasing to God.

The word watch in the scriptures talk about being alert. We have to make sure that we are constantly watching how we are living, seeing those living around us and being on alert so we are always living the way Christ would have us live. If we are not careful, then satan will try and tempt us and make us live in a way that is displeasing to God.

A scripture I would like to mention this week is found in Matthew 26:41. Jesus had talked to the disciples about how He was going to be arrested and He saw the need to go to the garden of Gethsemane to pray. He was really sad about what was going to happen and Jesus found himself at a point where he really needed to talk to His father. Before He went, He asked Peter, James and John to go with Him. He wanted them to go so they could keep watch for the soldiers who might come to arrest Him. While Jesus was praying, the disciples were tired so they fell asleep. They didn’t fall asleep just once, they fell asleep twice. They were so tired they just could not keep watch when Jesus needed them. Jesus said to them, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Watching and praying are two things we all need to do to make sure we are doing what God would have us do.

So how do we watch? I think one of the most important parts of watching is the second thing Jesus asked His disciples to do and that was pray. Watching, without praying, is very difficult. When we pray and ask Christ to help us live the way He wants us to live then that allows the Holy Spirit to help us. Watching is not just with our eyes, but it is also something done with our hearts. We need to examine our hearts, by praying, and ask God if there is something we need to watch out for. Are there things we are thinking about, or things we are listening to or being a part of that might allow satan to tempt us into doing and saying bad things?

Many of us may be like the disciples and just feel too tired to watch. We take for granted that we can just fight off the temptations of satan whenever they happen. There was a reason Jesus told the disciples to watch. We never know when temptations will come. However, if we are watching, and praying, we can be prepared to make decisions in our lives that will please God. Until next week…

 

Peace and Blessings,

Johnny