Thy Will Be Done

The Lord’s Prayer was given to us by Jesus and has been called the perfect prayer. Like most believers, I have prayed this prayer weekly at church, often at night or in the morning when I talk with God. Recently, as I was reciting this prayer, I was struck, or maybe convicted, that I was praying without actually thinking or meditating on the words. This prayer had become so familiar I wasn’t paying attention. I realized I was using this prayer to remind God of my need as if He had forgotten.

I said the words “Thy will be done,” but really, my heart and spirit were saying “my will be done.” This confession was a shock to my system. How long had I been praying without thinking, without truly worshiping, just saying words with my mouth and not my whole being?

When I find myself praying to “remind God” of a particular situation, it is because I or someone I love is experiencing something stressful or painful. I want them, or me, to be able to avoid it, skip it, or not go through the impending valley of suffering. I forget that pain, whether physical, spiritual, or emotional, often has a greater purpose. Not that God causes the pain, but because we are human, we are subject to the frailties of this fallen world.

Acceptance of Life’s Challenges

Great athletes push through the pain to accomplish their goals, doctors break bones to reset them correctly, cancer is removed by cutting out the disease, and a child’s birth is rarely without pain for the mother. Jesus suffered on the cross. The greater purpose was our salvation.

Acceptance of life’s challenges results from turning over my will, my desire for power and control, to God’s will, power, and control. This surrender is the acknowledgment that God never intended me to carry the burdens of life alone. Scripture says, “Cast all your cares on Him, for He cares for you.” This admission of need is contrary to our western culture of independence. Our desire to prove we can do it ourselves without help, to be our own god is the story of Adam and Eve all over again.

God provided everything and gave them just one rule, “from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die.” The tempter came along and said, “Surely, you will not die? For God knows you will eat it, and your eyes will be open, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” This was the hook; to be like God, to be all-knowing and without need. When Jesus gave us the Lord’s Prayer, He began with the reminder, “Your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.” In Acts 17:28, the apostle Paul declared, “For in Him we live and move and have our being.”

The Purpose Behind Pain and Suffering

In God’s hands, my pain and suffering have a purpose. Grief is not wasted in His hands. It is used to draw me near Him, to encourage and comfort others. In His hands, my heart is enlarged, and I become more compassionate. As I move from “why am I suffering?” to “how then I shall live?” the challenges of life can reform and transform me into His image. He created me to acknowledge, glorify, and worship Him. When I allow my prayers to become rote, too familiar, and without thought, I have forgotten the awe, the reverence, the mystery of prayer, and how purposeful prayer impacts my relationship with God.

On the one hand, there is a sweet simplicity; Jesus loves me, God is my Father, and I am His child comforted by Him as I pray. On the other hand, prayer is a profound and magnificent affirmation that the “living God who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that is in them” (Acts 17:24) has given me full access to Him. It is impossible to fully comprehend this “indescribable gift” of grace and truth. We do need “Our Father, who is in Heaven.” We are created to be dependent on Him. Thanks be to God!

Blessings,

Personal Parables is the blog of Dyann Shepard. Get Dyann’s complementary study in Proverbs and prayer guide, What to Do When You Don’t Feel Good Enough. If you need encouragement to remember the truth about yourself in times of doubt and anxiety, this free 5-day study is for you. Follow Dyann and Personal Parables on Instagram and Facebook. Dyann is available for speaking, guest blogging, and article writing.

Scripture for Meditation

The Lord’s Prayer: Matthew 6:8-13

Psalm 8 – Oh Lord, our Lord, how majestic is thy name in all the earth, who hast displayed thy splendor above the heavens.

I Peter 5:6,7 – Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, so that in due time He may exalt you. Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

Hebrews 4:14-16 (NASV) – Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (ESV) – For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

Lamentations 3:22-23 (ESV) – The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.