“Father God, Let Your Will Be Done!”

“Father God, Let Your Will Be Done!”(Mt.26:36-44).
“Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, ‘Sit here while I go over there and pray.’ He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, ‘My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.’ Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, ‘My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.’ Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. ‘Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?’ he asked Peter. ‘Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.’ He went away a second time and prayed, ‘My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.’ When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.”
Yesterday in the congregation, I asked to know if there are any who pray for the pastor. The pastor carries his own burden. While he is making that prayer for you, he is having some challenges, and he needs your prayers as much as you need his.
Life takes us to a certain point where we realise that our prayers cannot cause God to change his mind. When we come to that moment of truth, our prayer should be to ask God to let his will be done.
“Let you will be done” is not a prayer of resignation; it is a prayer of submission to the will of God.
If you have not yet been there, trust me, you will be there someday. And once you are there, the prayer can only be,
“Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” “Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.
What has come to be called “Serenity Prayer,” and attributed to Reinhold Niebuhr, a Lutheran theologian captures the realisation and acceptance of human limitation and the necessity of submissive obedience to the Divine decision: “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”
Once you know the things you cannot change, you will leave it to God. The wisdom to know the difference is the discernment that comes from watching and praying. Without discernment, you will fall into the temptation of forcing to change the things you cannot change.
My friend, our God is a God of good and bad times. While we hope for good times, bad times are inevitable. When bad times come, we have to submit to his will. In the meantime, we have to watch and pray, lest we fall into temptation. The temptation is the desire of the flesh, expecting God to do it our way, but the spirit is willing to do it God’s way. And God’s way is the way to go!
When the Lord Jesus got to that place, he gave us the model Prayer, “Let your will be done…” Such a submissive prayer is not at a place of fatality. Jesus submitted, and afterwards, he became the Christ. So he tells us to “watch and pray!”
Prayer:“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Amen!”
Welcome back to a new working day and week! Have a blessed working day and week! Peace be with you!
Rev Babila Fochang.
26/05/2025.