

Then He (Jesus) said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with Me." Matthew 26:38
Karen Bowles hadn't been seen much in Castile, New York. That's the town where Bowles lived.
Some of her neighbors were hard pressed to remember when they had seen Bowles last. Finally, partly because somebody was interested in buying her place, the police entered her home.
Bowles was there. She had been there, as best as anybody could guess, for an entire year. She was alone when she died. And since there were so few who missed her, I imagine she had been alone before.
On Maundy Thursday, Jesus had a special dinner with His friends. Unfortunately, they spent at least part of the evening arguing.
One of His closest friends left the meal early.
Jesus must have felt He was very much alone.
Later in the evening the Savior and His disciples journeyed to a peaceful place to pray. Jesus -- troubled and sorrowful about what had to happen if we were to be saved -- asked the disciples to stay awake and pray with Him.
They couldn't manage it. He asked them to pray a second time. And, sort of, even a third time. They never managed it -- not that night -- not the night it really mattered.
Jesus was alone.
He would be alone, alone when He was arrested, alone at His trial, alone when He was beaten and humiliated, alone when He carried His cross, and alone when He died.
Most certainly there were people around, but Jesus was alone. Nobody could come with Him on this divinely inspired journey which would lead to His death and our salvation. Jesus was alone and that was part of His sacrifice.
Still, because of what Jesus did, because of His total sacrifice, we who believe in Him know we will never be alone. A risen Savior has promised to be with us always.
Always. We will never be alone.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, I pray there will never be another Karen Bowles, a person who has to live and die alone. Your Son died alone so we might be surrounded by Your love and forgiveness. If possible, let me reflect that love into the lives of others who don't know how much You care. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
In Christ I remain His servant and yours,
Pastor Ken Klaus
Speaker emeritus of The Lutheran Hour®
Lutheran Hour Ministries
Today's Bible Readings: Deuteronomy 23-25 Luke 6:27-49
To Download Devotion MP3 to your computer, right click here and select "Save Link As" or "Save Target As" or "Download Linked File As"