Good morning. Praying to the Father “Not my will but yours be done” were the words of Jesus in Gethsemane on the night that would begin His passion and take Him to the cross. When Jesus taught us the truth of prayer and gave us His model of a perfect prayer in Matthew 6:7-15, He tells us to pray “Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
It can be a difficult task to set aside our will and accept the will of the Father, to pray that His will be done no matter what our desire may be. This is especially true when the subject of our prayer is a loved one.
This is my dilemma this afternoon. I have just returned to my office to write this thought for the day after traveling to Rochester to visit my son Mike in the hospital. His situation is dire. There is a problem with his brain properly conveying information to his feet and legs. This is leaving him unable to walk. The doctors do not know when, or if, this situation will leave him.
How do you pray for God’s will to be done when you are so overwhelmingly focused on receiving better news about someone you love? Could it be that it is God’s will for my son to struggle in this way? What possible lessons to be learned could make this situation fit within the will of God? I think those are good questions.
As I drove back from Rochester, the following scripture entered my mind and heart:
Nevertheless, I am continually with you;
you hold my right hand.
24 You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will receive me to glory.
25 Whom have I in heaven but you?
And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.
26 My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Psalm 73:23-26
This is my answer, and I will share it with my son soon.
“You know my heart and my prayer, oh Lord, and I will set my trust upon your love.”
Vern
Please pray for my son Mike, as well as for his family, including Pam and myself.