The Gospel writers give us glimpses of Jesus at prayer.
From them we learn that he wept, groaned in spirit,
and struggled with temptation. The author of Hebrews
boldly describes the “loud cries and tears” that sometimes
accompanied the prayers of Jesus and the obedience
he learned through suffering. The picture that emerges
reveals him as deeply engaged with life at all levels and as
courageously responsive to his vocation.
The reference to “the days of his flesh” emphasizes the
transitory nature and frailty of human life. Undoubtedly
the agony of Gethsemane was in the writer’s mind. In the
garden Jesus offered up, in a representative and sacrificial
way, the anguish of all people in times of extreme need.
He confronted the fear of death, asking God to remove the
cup, but finally consented to the divine will. In this terrible
struggle, the human Jesus learned obedience to God’s will
through the suffering he endured.
Maturity or “perfection” in human character is not static
but develops through our responses to life’s constantly
changing circumstances. Luke 2:52 states that “Jesus
increased in wisdom and in stature” through obedience
to earthly parents and God. The wholehearted embracing
of life’s ambiguities and responsibilities, along with the
relinquishing of self-interest, made it possible to speak of
his “being made perfect.” Living each day attentive to God’s
voice is the means by which we identify our fear, pray our
anguish, and grow to full stature as those created in the
divine image.

By Elizabeth J. Canham from The Upper Room: 60 Days of Prayer for General Conference 2016