Mark 14:35-36
And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.

All things are possible to God. That is the faith of Jesus Christ, His Son. That is what He sought to teach the disciples and people everywhere as He ministered and taught around Israel. It is an important principle and an oft-repeated phrase. It is the hope of all who believe and find themselves in some difficult situation. This is the prayer of Jesus Christ just hours before He would give His life. All things are possible with God. But in order for salvation to be possible with God, He could not answer this prayer how Jesus was asking. It was not possible to take away this cup and still go forward with His plan. It was not God’s will to spare His Son, but to offer Him there on the altar of sacrifice.

When we face the agonizing situations of life, when we face something painful or even merely uncomfortable, what do our prayers look like? Are they prayers of faith like the one Jesus offered? Do we truly believe that all things are possible? If so, we do well. But there is another part to it that maybe we don’t always want to include. God is not some servant at our beck and call. Just because He can do something does not mean that He will. In His infinite wisdom, He knows best. He knows what needs to be done. He is sovereign and decides as He sees fit. That doesn’t make Him any less able to do things. It just means that He acts according to His mind and His will that are often beyond our understanding. A true act of faith is this surrender that Jesus demonstrates for us—believing that God can and humbly accepting when He chooses not to.