Day 8: Be Done
Jesus’ prayer continues in asking not only for God’s will, but for God’s will to be done. This word is translated as “something that has come about or that continues to come about.” The idea that is communicated here is one in which the person praying is not only asking for God’s will to be done presently, but to become aware of God’s activity in the past and to be open to God’s work in the future as well. It is an invitation that is partnered with our surrender to the will of the Lord. We are inviting the Lord’s history, present, and future promises to become our reality as we receive, give, and live from His will alone.
Many people are familiar with the phrase, “Everything happens for a reason.” It has been a terminology that comes from a rich history of theology that believes that everything that happens is God’s purpose. This means every good and every bad thing happens because that is the intent of the Lord. I do not believe this is true. I believe that God has planned out every step our lives, that His will is available for us to receive and live in, but ultimately, because He created us in love, we have been given the freedom to choose His will and plan, or our own. Furthermore, I believe that when we come into the reality of believing, thinking, and aligning ourselves with His will, and making it our choice each day, we are creatively partnering with His robust history, present, and future.
In praying, “Your will be done” we are choosing, with our freedom of will, to align ourselves, our lives, our thoughts, our passions, our relationships, etc. with the will of the One who not only knows all things, but knows what is best. In this prayer, it may lead us to places that hurt, it may lead us to places in which things happen that seem like they are bad or dangerous, it may lead us to times of stretching and challenge, but really this is all promised. The beauty of this prayer is that it comes from the same One who instructed His disciples, “In this world you will have trial and tribulation, but take heart, for I have overcome the world (Jn. 16:33).” When we ask for the will of the Lord to be done, we ask for His divine victory to be our history, our present, and our future, and we can continue to receive and live from that victory when we continue to choose to pray, “Your will be done.” Amen.
Action: Make a list of all the things in your life in which you are confused, questioning, hurting, insecure, or needing direction. As you look at each item speak out verbally, “Not my will, but Your will be done.” Finally, next to each item write something like, “This does not define me,” or “This is not the end,” or “God’s victory is where I live from.” At the end of this exercise, simply breathe out, Lord, align me with Your activity.
