He walked away, about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” Luke 22:41-42
“I want your will to be done, not mine.” These were the words Jesus prayed right before He was arrested and killed in Luke 22:42. At this time, He knew exactly what was about to happen. He would be betrayed, arrested, brutally beaten, and eventually killed. As He prayed, He asked God the Father to please let Him not have to endure the suffering that He knew was coming. Of course, He did not want to endure such pain. And yet, after His plea to God the Father, He said, “I want your will to be done, not mine. More than anything else, He wanted God the Father’s will. As a result, when He finished His prayer, He was able to pray for the Father’s will above all else.
Jesus’ prayer, “Yet I want your will to be done, not mine,” is a model for you and me today as we seek to discern God’s will. We have to ask ourselves if we want God’s will more than anything else, even above our own will and desires. Ultimately discerning God’s will is all about surrender. Are we willing to follow God’s will even if it differs from our desires? This surrender requires trust in God and His plan. If we trust God and His plan, then it is only natural to surrender to His will.
If I am being honest, sometimes I have a hard time praying, “Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” Surrendering to His will is not always easy. Maybe you can relate. The truth of the matter is, I must remember that He is all knowing, and I am not. He is all powerful, and I am weak. He knows everything, and I do not know everything. If I had to choose between my will and His, His will is best every single time. He is our creator and the creator of the entire universe. May you and I surrender to His will today.
Take time right now to talk to God about His will for your life. Instead of telling Him what you want as you consider His will for your life, ask Him for His will to be done. Confess to Him that you know He is all-knowing and all-powerful and that you know that His plan is best. Thank Him that He is God and in control, and you are not. Pray the prayer of Jesus, “I want your will to be done, not mine.”
Luke 22:39-46 (NLT)
Then, accompanied by the disciples, Jesus left the upstairs room and went as usual to the Mount of Olives. There he told them, “Pray that you will not give in to temptation.”
He walked away, about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him. He prayed more fervently, and he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood.
At last he stood up again and returned to the disciples, only to find them asleep, exhausted from grief. “Why are you sleeping?” he asked them. “Get up and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation.”
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