When Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, he said, “if it be your will.” However, he submitted himself to the Father’s will – humble yourself before the Father’s will today.
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Have you ever asked God for something and prayed “if it be your will”?
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada and you’d be surprised at the many Christians who insist that if, if you add that qualifier, it shows a lack of faith. I read one pastor who insisted that it kills faith to ask something of the Lord but then quickly add, “if it be your will.” Now how could that phrase possibly diminish faith?
I mean, look at the Lord Jesus. He’s our best example. In Luke 22, there’s Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane, right before his crucifixion. And, I mean, he is struggling – struggling in horrific suffering. And so, in his moment of greatest affliction, Jesus prays, “Father, if it is your will, take this cup away from me.” In other words, he was inasmuch saying, “Father, I am facing sheer hell here, and so if there is any path through this, I would really like it not to be this way, not the cross.” But then, in the next breath, he adds, "yet not my will, but yours be done." So the thing I’m trying to get across is that Jesus considered obedience to God far more important than a detour around suffering, around Mount Calvary, where the worst kind of suffering awaited him. And right then, right when he acquiesced before his Father, then there appeared an angel with an answer from God. And the answer was? "You must drink this cup." Having said that, though, this same angel strengthened him.
Now, I really resonate with this way of praying, ’cause I’ve got my own small Gethsemane, as it were, and it’s dealing with pain every single day. And like my Savior, I often pray, “Lord, I am facing hell here, so I would really like it not to be this way. I’m asking you to take this cup of pain away from me.” But then, like Christ, I always add that important qualifier, “Yet not my will, but yours be done.”
Most often, the answer he has given me is, “Joni, you must drink this cup.” And that’s okay. It might not be the answer I was hoping for, but always I want to be submissive to the will of my father; I want to be obedient. I want to be in line with his will. Because if I were healed and lacked that, I’d have nothing. There are more important things in life than living pain free. The more important thing is trusting Jesus and being content with his will. Because the bottom line is for Jesus to get the glory, whether my chronic pain goes away or it stays. And if it stays, then I know what God’s will is: I’ve got lessons to learn, I’ve got a character to be honed, I’ve got other wounded people to identify with, we’ve got a hurting world to reach with the Gospel, and a suffering Savior with whom I can enjoy a greater intimacy. So either way, whether in pain or without it, it’s all about the glory of God and his awesome purposes. R.C. Sproul once said, "When we come before God, we must remember two simple facts – who he is and who we are… If we keep those facts in mind, we will pray politely. We will say, ‘By your leave,’ or ‘as you wish,’ or ‘if you please’ and so on. [That is] the way we go before God.”
So, friend, to say “thy will be done” to the Lord is to show him honor and respect, as well as a higher value on God’s ultimate will. Hey, I talk more about this in my pamphlet, “Where’s My Miracle?” So get your copy today at joniradio.org. Remember, the more important thing in prayer is to trust Christ with his will. Even when, and especially when it hurts. Find out more at joniradio.org.
© Joni and Friends