These questions haunt us this morning. There are so many things that we want. Some of us here this morning are particularly burdened with needs and desires. A friend or loved one is sick unto death.
Doctors can no longer give out a reasonable hope of recovery.
Relationships are broken beyond any earthly expectation of repair. Our self-esteem continues drags on at an insufficient level. At our age there is little realistic prospect that we are going to master our lives the way the gurus, the motivational speakers, and the television evangelists encourage us to believe. T he Gospel lesson today is lesson on prayer, but it is not the kind of teaching that we would expect or perhaps want. Jesus' disciples wait while Jesus prays at a certain place.