“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
Your kingdom come,
Your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts,
As we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one."
- Matthew 6:9-13
I think something that has been really become true for me to pray is “Your Will be done”. How hard it can be to pray that. But what is in the Father’s Will? Only goodness, peace, and love come with the Father’s Will. He has loved us with an everlasting love and has drawn us with an everlasting kindness (Jeremiah 31:3). With that being said, He is not a god that He can fail…or lie. How often do we treat God as if He is a friend we had in high school that stabbed us in the back? All the time. We act like God isn’t God. Something I struggle with is really trusting that His Will can actually bring me happiness and Joy. I always feel as though His Will could almost hurt my happiness. But it is when I sacrifice my limited, dirty, and weak will that I can see Him for who He really is. The question is this, can I allow my heart to believe this:
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. “
-Jeremiah 29:11-13
If I honestly believed that, then I would clearly see that my plans can’t prosper me like my Father’s, and that my plans would in fact, harm me. And I know that is true. This passage also says I will find the Lord when I seek Him with all my heart. I will find Him! Not His stuff, or His gifts, but the Lord Himself. And that is what we desire ultimately. I want to love God because He is worthy of my worship; not because of what that will mean for me in return.
Ultimately, I want to look at Jesus. That’s all I really want to do.
“Those who look to him are radiant;
their faces are never covered with shame.”
- Psalm 34:5
I will be radiant when I look to Him. No more shame. I will be radiant!
“For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light we see light. “
- Psalm 36:9
Jesus is our fountain of life. The Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6). He is our whole purpose here. And through Him, we can see Him, and His Light. I want to be in that light of His.
“Delight yourself in the LORD
and he will give you the desires of your heart. “
- Psalm 37:4
This is a great verse. Firstly, delight yourself in Him. Take pleasure in in Him, enjoy Him, adore Him. That is key! Also, the Lord really broke me of something regarding this verse. I used to see it as in delighting once in a while and then expecting, “Okay, God…why are You not giving me the desires of my heart already? They have to be good, because I’ve delighted, haven’t I?” That doesn’t work! So, “Delight yourself….” Is not a once in awhile thing. It is a constant devotion and dedication. I don’t think anyone ever delighted in something once. Delighting in the Lord must be constant. He can change our hearts if we give them up to Him.
My goal is to seek the Lord. And I want to be filled in the Spirit, to be joyful in Him, and to not worry about anything about my relationship with Him.
“Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.”
- Ephesians 5:18
Or as The Message says:
“Don't drink too much wine. That cheapens your life. Drink the Spirit of God, huge draughts of him” - Ephesians 5:18 (The Message)
Jesus enriches my life, and all my broken cisterns leave me restless.
Father, in You, I commit my trust, and my Spirit. It is Yours. Do with me what You choose; You are my security, and my Joy. I can’t leave Your presence without feeling changed. Change me. Fall on me more, I want to see You. That is all I want.
