“Thy will be done.”
The words are familiar to us. Memorized and held close against our hearts, this prayer was given to us by Jesus himself in Matthew 6. It is a simple but weighty instruction manual to prayer.
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
Matthew 6:9-10
Your kingdom come, your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.”
But those words, “Thy will be done.” My sinful self finds them much harder to say.
It’s difficult to say, “Thy will be done” when faced with tremendous pain or suffering. How can I pray “Thy will be done” knowing that I may not be comfortable with the answer? Or when faced with the realities of this world — with sickness and job loss and injustice and brokenness? Can I trust His will even then?
My hands clutch tightly at the last vestiges of control, white-knuckled and refusing to let go. The lie that, “I know best” is so tantalizing; so easy for me to believe.
“Thy will be done.”
When those words seem impossibly heavy, we remember the garden of Gethsemane.
We remember the Son of God, falling on the ground in prayer, His soul sorrowful until death. Knowing what was coming, knowing the full will of the Father, He prayed, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
Mark 14:35-36
“Thy will be done.”
We serve a God who understands the full weight of that prayer.
We serve a God who humbled Himself in obedience to the Father — the God who calls us to submit to His will, having already done so Himself on the cross.
And we serve a God whose will is good. A God whom we can trust, even when we don’t understand.
There is glorious freedom to be found in surrender because we know that God’s will is good. As we release our own grip on control, He invites us to count it all joy, drawing us closer to Him even in suffering.
In the aligning of our hearts to His, we can pray “Thy will be done” with the confident assurance that no matter what tomorrow holds, we rest secure in Him. His nail-pierced hands hold us tight.
**Post originally appeared on the MommyMannegren Facebook page.
Wow! This is amazing! This was what I meditated and prayed with this morning about an issue very dear to my heart. I focused on when Jesus prayed at Gethsemane. You have been led by God to write this post. Yes, indeed let his will be done in our lives.