Jesus’ Blueprint Against Anguish And Despair
How His suffering gave you the victory over anxiety
Through my mental health battles, I’ve learned that if someone understands me, it’s Jesus. The Holy Spirit made it clear to me that Jesus knows what it is to struggle with anguish, despair, ultimate rejection, and betrayal.
The Gospel outlines Jesus’ journey through humanity and coming out victorious on the other side of death. Though He had to suffer incredibly for our freedom. He had to overcome death and all the condemnation, deep despair, and soul-wrenching pain that comes with it.
Before and during His crucifixion, Jesus was fraught with deep pain. His anxiety was so intense that His sweat drops became like blood (Luke 22:44) when He was praying in the garden of Gethsemane. What He did during the profound anguish of His soul is an illuminating guide for us who are currently struggling with our mental health.
“Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane and said to the disciples, ‘Sit here while I go and pray close by.’ He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee and began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Wait here, and keep watch with me.”
He went a little farther, and falling on His face, He prayed, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”
Then he came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “So, could you not keep watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you enter not into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
He went away a second time and prayed, “O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from me unless I drink it, your will be done.”
Again, he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. So leaving them again, He went away and prayed the third time, saying the same words.” (Matthew 26: 36–43, MEV)
I believe this passage holds the key to seeing the deliverance of the Lord in our minds and spirits. Jesus showed us what to do when the sorrow of our souls becomes so overwhelming that it crushes our souls. His actions wrote the blueprint for us to have victory over our mental battles.
In the Garden:
1. Jesus prayed in the Holy Spirit
“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:7, ESV)
Jesus died on that wretched cross so that He could give us His mind on our current situations and struggles. When He was in the garden of Gethsemane, His soul was in unexplainable sorrow. He suffered so that we could be free. When we face heaviness in our spirits and minds, our task is to surrender them in prayer to God, and He will guard our hearts with Jesus’ hard-won peace.
2. Jesus sought support from others to help Him watch and pray
“Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ’s law.” (Galatians 6:2, MSG)
Our Christian duty and privilege are to help carry each other’s burdens. Taking Jesus’ example in the Garden of Gethsemane, He brought along some of his closest friends/disciples to watch and pray with Him. He knew the power of sharing heavy burdens with others so as to stay encouraged.
The Bible says that we all are to encourage and exhort each other, for the times are evil, and they indeed are. So many people are struggling silently while God never intended them to do so. The Holy Spirit knows that the enemy works the best in isolation. That’s why the Scriptures admonish us to gather together and share life to protect us from the evil one.
3. Jesus trusted God’s will ultimately for Him, and He was strengthened in His inner-man to complete the mission
“But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one. May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ.” (2 Thessalonians 3: 3,5, NLT)
Through prayer and the presence of His disciples, Jesus made it through one of the darkest nights of His soul before His ultimate crushing victory on the cross. He took ample time with the Father to pour out His soul’s suffering, anguish, and despair.
Yet, He went to those depths so that we do not have to anymore. We now have His protection against the evil one, and condemnation no longer has the overhand over us. It is up to us to go to the Father and ask Him to strengthen our inner man so that we walk in the victory that we already have over the enemy’s voices.
Jesus, when faced with the internal burden of unimaginable suffering, went to seek the face of the Father. He pressed deep into prayer for God to give Him the relief and courage He needed to face His greatest trial head-on. However, the disciples failed in their task to stay awake and intercede in the Spirit for Him.
Nevertheless, Jesus was undeterred and continued to press on in faith and prayer to get the courage He needed to face His trial head-on. We have the same victorious power that God strengthened Jesus in His inner man with. He knows our sorrows and sufferings intimately and wants to give us His joy and hope instead.
It is up to us to trust Him with all that is haunting us so that His peace can rule our hearts. Satan cannot hold a candle to Jesus’ peace and today I encourage you to surrender all your pain to Jesus. He truly is a man that knows our sorrows and wants to surround us with His songs of victory.
“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13, NLT)
