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April 13, 2009 - Seeking God's Will

This, then, is how you should pray:
“ ‘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.’  Matt. 6:9-13 (emphasis added)

How can we seek and know God’s will in a situation?  According to scripture we are to do the following:

• Pray
• Seek the wise counsel and support of other believers
• Evaluate the circumstances (Is God making certain things obvious?)
• Trust in God who will “make us to know”
• Focus on the purpose God has given to each of us
• Keep an eternal perspective

Is accepting God’s will always easy?  NO!  Before his crucifixion even Christ struggled a bit with the issue of accepting God’s will to die on Calvary’s Cross for the sins of mankind.  In Mark 14:35-36 we read, "Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”" Mark 14:35-36 (NIV)

Was Jesus trying to get out of what lay before him when he prayed, “Please take this cup of suffering away from me”?  No, but he was expressing his human emotions – his aversion to the pain, torture, and suffering that would be the end result of his obedience to God’s will.  Accepting God’s will isn’t always easy.  We struggle with our fleshly nature to control and manipulate while knowing that God’s will is always perfect.

In his prayer before the Cross, Jesus was aware of what doing the Father’s will would cost him, but he also saw beyond the horrible experience of crucifixion and recognized that this was part of the plan from the beginning of time.  He would take on the sins of the entire world in order to bring us salvation.  His death would give us life.

Anything worth having costs something, but sometimes that cost is difficult for us to handle.  Seek God and His purpose for your life.  Relax in knowing that He loves you and has the perfect solution to each of your concerns.