“Lord, it is so good for us to be here!” Luke 9:33.

Jesus liked to bring Peter, John and James along and let them witness a lot of important moments. For example, they were present during His transfiguration, when He raised Jairus’ daughter from the dead, and lastly, when He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane.

There are a lot of parallels between the Transfiguration and the Agony in the garden. During both situations, Jesus was praying with His disciples, while the disciples were trying to fight off sleepiness. However, during His transfiguration, Jesus’ face was radiant like the Sun, and He said to the disciples, “Get up! Do not be afraid!”

During His prayer session at the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus’ sweat was like great drops of blood, falling down to the ground. He said to His disciples, “Could you not keep watch for one hour? Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation!”

When Peter saw Jesus in radiance, talking with Moses and Elijah, he could not help but say, “Lord, it is good for us to be here!”

When we experience the presence of Jesus, we would also exclaim, “Lord, it is good for us to be here.” Jesus never fails to keep his promise. He promised that he would be with us whenever we gather in His name and act charitably. To love effectively, we need to sacrifice “self”, and strive to do God’s will.