The Lord's Prayerنموونە

Your Kingdom Come, Your Will Be Done

Jesus’ reverence and honour towards His Father is clear: everything is about the Father, for the Father, and is done unto the Father.

Jesus says, “Father, Your name be hallowed, Your kingdom come, Your will be done.” This is how He teaches us to pray too.

As much as my head knows, understands, and believes this, I find myself falling into praying something like this instead: “God, hallowed be my name, my kingdom come, and my will be done.”

Okay, perhaps my prayers aren’t like this word for word. But I do pray prayers that put me at the centre instead of God. I pray for the things that I desire: the job I want, the place I want to live in, the person I want to be with…and I selfishly think that these are the things that God also desires for me.

When did I stop to ask the Lord for His perspective?

Dear friend, I can honestly say that praying for the Father’s will to be done in me and through me has been the hardest thing for me to learn as I have walked with God.

It has required so much rethinking and rewiring of my mind. It has required greater depths of surrender, relinquishing control, and trusting in the Lord. It has required me to humble myself and to admit that I actually don’t know what’s best for my life. Ultimately, it has displaced me from the throne that I was sitting on, and it has put God back where He belongs.

Over time, the Lord showed me that my desires were what I wanted but not what I needed. He revealed to me that His will was perfect, unlike mine which is limited and imperfect. He showed me that I could trust that He has everything under control. Dear friend, the Lord’s will for you is good. In fact, it is perfect.

But on top of all of that, praying for God’s will to be done and for His kingdom to come is about far more than our own lives. It is about asking Him what He is concerned about in the world. What is happening in the world that does not align with His kingdom? What is it that He wants to bring transformation to? The Lord wants us to be part of bringing that change to the world through prayer!

May we all seek to be believers who not only hear Jesus’ instruction to pray like this, but may we actually do it!

Reflection:

Have you been praying prayers that put you at the centre instead of God? Pray for His will to be done in your life.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father,

Hallowed be Your name. Heavenly Father, Your kingdom come. Heavenly Father, Your will be done.

I pray that this will be the prayer of my heart from today onwards. Father, less of me and more of you. Father, please transform my thinking; please show me that You are in control; and please help me to know that You know what’s best for my life.

Lord, I repent for putting myself on the throne of my life. I step off that throne today, and invite You to take Your rightful place. Come and be Lord of my life today. Show me what Your will is. Show me how You want Your kingdom to come today.