"He walked away, about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed, 'Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.' Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him." -Luke 22:41-43
Have you ever prayed the prayer above? Have you ever said to God, "Not my will Father, but yours be done"? What an amazing statement by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
It may seem like quite a dangerous statement. Do we really trust God enough to completely give our lives over to Him? Are we really willing to do anything? However, I would argue that it is even more dangerous to get to the end of our lives, stand before God, and fail to hear the words, "Well done, good and faithful servant..."
When we first accept Jesus as our Savior, we entrust our spiritual well-being and the destination of our soul to Him. Then, we progressively begin to understand what it means to live out the words, "not my will, Father, but yours be done."
Even though Jesus was Lord over the universe, He still deferred His authority to His Father, God - God of all creation. And through Jesus' willingness, God was able to accomplish something miraculous through Him. His death... His resurrection. He completely changed the world.
Have you ever prayed that prayer, "Not my will, but Yours be done?" I wonder how the world could be changed by our willingness to do anything, to be whatever God needed us to be. Will you have the faith and courage to pray it today?
"People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry at the Lord." -Proverbs 19:3
Do
you know people who think God hates them, or that He causes or allows
bad things to happen in their lives in order to "teach them a lesson"?
Because we live in a fallen world, each of us might believe this to a
certain extent when times get tough. When we can’t see God’s hand in a
situation, we can question whether He really is for us, and why the
situation is happening to us. The negative circumstance becomes very
personal.
Author and Pastor Craig Hill wrote a book called, "If God Is In
Control, Then Why...?" In the book he explores why bad things happen to
good people.
"Sometimes devastation occurs as a result of of
enemy activity... Other times it is simply a lack of understanding of
the natural principles in life..." pg. 74 He states that God has
authority, but He is not in control. "This thinking that 'God is in
control' renders New Covenant believers powerless as pawns, rather than
warriors." pg. 58
When God set up the world, He gave Adam authority. (Genesis 1:28)
When Adam fell, He lost that authority, however when Jesus came, He
reclaimed that authority and delegated His authority to man. "I have
been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make
disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father
and the Son and the Holy Spirit." -Matt 28:18-19
I am reminded of a graphic I saw online that says, "Sometimes I want
to ask God why He allows poverty, famine, and injustice in the world
when He could do something about it, but I’m afraid He might ask me the same question."
Do you believe God has His best reserved for you, in spite of ours
and others' mistakes? Decide to believe Him, and walk in His promises
today. Because of His sacrifice we can abide in victory, even though we
live in a fallen world.
