by Pastor Douglas Brauner

Thy Will Be Done

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”
Luke 22:44 English Standard Version

Through reading the book, The Passion of the Cross, I recently realized that I wasn’t fully understanding what I say in the Lord’s Prayer when I pray, “Thy will be done.” In fact, it’s not so much what I say, but what I don’t say.

Every time I pray, “Thy will be done,” I’m praying Jesus’ prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane when he said, “Nevertheless, not my will but your will be done.” (Luke 22:42 ESV) “Thy will be done (not mine) on earth as it is in heaven.”

We sweat blood every time we pray, “Thy will be done,” because our will comes into direct contact with the will of God.

Whose will is more important?

We too often believe one thing and live another. We believe that God’s will is more important than our will; however, we act as though our will is more urgent than God’s.

As we prepare to enter 2021, this battle will continue to rage. As we prepare for the fight, it is good for us to recall how the struggle between God’s will and ours went in 2020. When did we sweat blood struggling with wanting our will to be accomplished rather than God’s will? As we’ve battled isolation, fear, and hopelessness, how did it work when our will trumped his?

I’m not suggesting that we should stop sweating blood; in fact, I’m advocating the opposite. Jesus fully engaged in this battle hours before his crucifixion. He earnestly prayed that the cup of suffering might be lifted from him. He sweat real blood; yet, he understood that his will must come under his Father’s will.

What is God’s will? That’s the million dollar question until we realize that it is always God’s will that we love him above everything else and our neighbor as ourselves. No matter where we find ourselves, this will always be God’s desire for us.

May we fully engage in this battle between our will and God’s so that we might say, “Your will be done, not mine.”

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado