Praying “Thy will be done” requires both child-like trust and seasoned belief in God's Goodness (Ps. 86:5; Ro. 8:28). It is Job's “though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him” (Job 3:15). It is the unshakable “even if He does not [rescue us]” confidence of the three thrown into the fiery furnace (Dan. 3:18).
In Practicing the Presence of God, Brother Lawrence explains, “We ought to give ourselves up to God, to things temporal and spiritual, and seek our satisfaction only in the fulfilling of His will, whether by suffering or consolation, each being equal to a soul truly resigned.” During these increasingly uncertain times, knowing that God's Will will be done is a comfort and strength. But that doesn't mean it won't be the hardest prayer you will ever pray.
Greg,
ReplyDeleteAfter doing a word study on the words translated "will" (both the verb as well as the noun) in both the Old and New Testaments I concluded the following: positioning oneself in the will of God is to stand under the delight of God. And when the Object of our greatest love and devotion takes delight in us (and He is faithful to let us know when this is taking place) nothing else in this life compares!
David was one to take delight in doing the will of God (Psalm 40:6-8), as was our Lord Jesus also (Heb.10:5-10, quoting the Psalms passage as prophetic of the "Son of David".
Are there truly times when submitting to the will of God is the hardest thing for us to do? Yes, indeed, especially when we are facing our own mortality or that of one of our loved ones. Yet if we determine to take delight in knowing the God of the will then we will know His delight as He makes His will known to us! It is simply His nature and is a free expression of His character to do so! And we are safe!
Stan
Thanks again Stan. God's will appears hard, or confusing, or even bewildering, 'in time,' but God's will transcends 'time' and when we set our minds on 'things above,' God's will becomes 'delightful.' Jesus says, "my yoke [my will?] is light and my burden [my will?] is easy.
ReplyDeleteGreg
Good morning,
ReplyDeleteCogent thoughts, all! Thank you for sharing!
An earlier cause to "not my will, but thy will," is to be willing to be willing. Ahh, for me there is the rub! Because it is in that place that I discover that I have an idol that I desperately worship (my own will). In my own slavish devotion to my own will, I am not able to tear down that idol. So it requires the work of God to tear down that idol.
Looking at Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. [ESV]. It is not "if I am happy in God, it is a Ferrari in every garage and a filet mignon on every BBQ." It is rather "If I delight myself in God, God places His desires (as a gift!) in my heart."
THAT is the grand exchange that trumps all exchanges. Because when I do that first step, then God, as an undeserved gift to me, gives me His desires and makes me willing to be willing.
How comprehensive is that Love, Mercy, and Grace to me! Amazing!
Godspeed!
Larry
Hey Larry, it's so good to hear from you again. As always, thanks for taking the thought of the post to greater depths.
ReplyDeleteGreg