{"id":640,"date":"2011-08-21T09:00:50","date_gmt":"2011-08-21T14:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.barbdahlgren.com\/?p=640"},"modified":"2011-08-20T00:32:04","modified_gmt":"2011-08-20T05:32:04","slug":"thy-will-be-done","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/?p=640","title":{"rendered":"Thy Will Be Done"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>In Matthew 6:9-13 we have what is called \u201cThe Lord\u2019s Prayer.\u201d Considered a model prayer it\u2019s used as a guide in teaching us how to pray. Most have it memorized. It starts with \u201cOur father which art in heaven\u2026\u201d and ends with \u201c\u2026for thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.\u201d Nestled in the middle of this adulation for God is a little phrase: \u201cThy will be done…\u201d How many of us say this phrase in prayers? If we do, what does it mean to us?<\/p>\n

Do we pray it because God is greater than us and we know he\u2019s going to do what he wants to do anyway in our lives? Do we pray it because God is smarter than us and so we know he\u2019s arranging all our lives to suit himself? Are we just pawns on the chess board of life with God moving us here and there for his amusement? So we just say, \u201cThy will be done\u201d because God will do what he wants to do anyway. Are we thinking we have no choices in life so why not say to God, \u201cJust do what you want because what I want doesn\u2019t matter anyway.\u201d Sort of like something we\u2019d say if we didn\u2019t want to argue with someone any longer.<\/p>\n

If those are our motives in saying, \u201cThy will be done\u201d then we are missing the point.<\/p>\n

We do have something to say about our wants, wishes, and desires. God listens to us with his heart as well as his head. He has given us free will and does not force us to always do what he wants. If that were the case none of us would ever sin or hurt ourselves. He allows us to go our own way if that\u2019s what we want. God does not use his supreme power to control us. God is not a God of control; he is a God of love.<\/p>\n

As we grow in our relationship with God we learn more fully that he truly loves us. He wants only the best for us. When we realize God is compassionate, loving, and kind, we actually want to surrender our will to his. We trust him.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not wrong to make our wishes known. Jesus did this in the Garden of Gethsemane when facing the crucifixion. He prayed \u201cMy Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.\u201d (Matthew 26:39) However he deferred to God because of the love relationship he had with him.<\/p>\n

In addition to praying for God\u2019s will to be done is our lives we can ask him to reveal his will to us so we can actively participate in what he wants. You see, prayer should not focus on trying to talk God into giving us what we want. Prayer is a time to align our will with God\u2019s.<\/p>\n

If we say, \u201cThy will be done\u201d as a condescending acceptance of God\u2019s power, we will never know the God of love. However, those words spoken in humility, surrender, and desire for God\u2019s involvement in our lives can give us joy and a peace that passes all understanding \u2013 even when we don\u2019t get what we want. (Philippians 4:7)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In Matthew 6:9-13 we have what is called \u201cThe Lord\u2019s Prayer.\u201d Considered a model prayer it\u2019s used as a guide in teaching us how to pray. Most have it memorized. It starts with \u201cOur father which art in heaven\u2026\u201d and … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/640"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=640"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/640\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}