“…yet not my will, but yours be done.” (Luke 22:42, NIV)
I am not a golfer who typically prays before a round. Oh, I have things that I want to see happen each time I play—namely, at least one birdie and a score below 80—but these are not things that make my prayer list or roll off my tongue in a momentary petition. Sorry to burst your bubble if you think I am more spiritual than this.
But let’s say I did pray about these things. What should that prayer sound like? Should I state flat out what I want to see happen? And how careful should I be to add, “Not my will, Lord, but your will be done”?
Of course, we’re not talking only about the prayers of golfers. People want to know how they should come to God in prayer. Gladly, Scripture has much to say about the matter. More than that, it has much to show us. And we can probably learn no better than when we look at the way Jesus prayed.
Among Jesus’ well-known times of prayer is when he was on his knees in the Garden of Gethsemane, talking to his Father about the hours that were just in front of him. All the prophecies, and all that Jesus knew from his previous times of prayer with the Father, led him to understand what God had in store: death. And Jesus knew the form this death would take: crucifixion. This was not an old man whose time had come. This was a vibrant 33-year-old craftsman and teacher—yet his days were, he knew, severely numbered.
We can, and should, ask for what we want in prayer. This is a matter of honesty, even a baring of our soul.
So what did Jesus’ prayer in the garden consist of? Many know the second part of the prayer: “Not my will but yours be done.” It is used mistakenly as a formula and, worse, as a caveat. We think we can protect ourselves against God this way, because he may not actually give us what we want, and we don’t want to be disappointed or to say he didn’t answer our prayer as we would have wished.
But there is a first part to this prayer: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me.” Jesus asked pointedly for what he wanted—to not be led to the cross.
We can, and should, ask for what we want in prayer. This is a matter of honesty, even a baring of our soul. And we should turn every prerogative over to God.
Charles Spurgeon explained it this way:
The loyal child of God…utters his desire earnestly, vehemently, importunately, and pleads and pleads again, yet it is evermore with this needful reservation: “Thy will be done, my Lord; and if I ask anything that is not in accordance therewith, my inmost will is that Thou wouldst be good enough to deny Thy servant; I will take it as a true answer if Thou refuse me, if I ask that which seemeth not good in Thy sight.”
There is no caveat in this deference, friends. Instead there is a worshipful acknowledgement of God’s greater knowledge and a grateful recognition that the way God will answer any prayer is in the way that is best for us. It’s not a surrender that says “I have lost,” but a surrender that says, “With you in charge, I always win.”
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Jeff Hopper
October 13, 2020
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The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.
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