Remember Jesus' words to Peter in the garden of Gethsemane? After praying fervently the night before his crucifixion, Jesus found Peter and two other disciples sleeping instead of watching and praying with him. He asked Peter, “What, could ye not watch with me one hour?” (Matt. 26:40).
Years ago, I faced that same question. Whenever I attended Sunday church services, I found it very difficult to stay poised and focused on the Lesson-Sermon. Everything but the wonderful message of that Lesson flooded thought: musings about other people, disquiet and fear, things to be done at home, anticipation of activities later in the day—a potpourri of distractions.
But those words of Jesus to his closest followers kept ringing in my heart. As I pondered them, I saw that one way of looking at our church service was to see it as an opportunity to keep watch with the Christ during that one hour, even to bring “into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” (II Cor. 10:5).
