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"Your will be doneOn earth as it is in heaven.”(Matt. 6:10 NKJV)
(This is the fourth segment of The Model Prayer series.)

God’s will...in heaven...perfect; on earth...not so much.

What is God’s will?

God’s will is what He desires, purposes, and has determined to be done on earth. It is His established kingdom rule in heaven being accomplished on earth by, for, and through His people.

God reveals His will in several ways. One way He chose to reveal some of His will is in His Word. He first gave His revealed will to His people Israel through the Law as a standard of righteousness.

Believers in Christ are not under that Law, as Paul told the Roman church, “You are not under law but under grace.” (Rom. 6:14b NKJV) As God has offered us grace through Christ, He is now our ultimate standard of righteousness.

Do we truly seek God’s will and to live according to His standard of righteousness?

What are we not to do?

To stubbornly and arrogantly insist on our own way. Which means disobedience to God’s Word and His will. In the New Testament, the “self-willed” and “presumptuous” are those “who walk according to the flesh.” (2 Peter 2:10 NKJV)

Paul wrote to the Roman church about those walking in the flesh, “The carnal attitude sees no further than natural things. But the spiritual attitude reaches out after the things of the Spirit. The former attitude means, bluntly, death: the latter means life and inward peace. And this is only to be expected, for the carnal attitude is inevitably opposed to the purpose of God, and neither can nor will follow His laws for living. Men who hold this attitude cannot possibly please God.” (Rom. 8:5-8 Phillips)

What did Jesus say about doing His own will? “I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.” (John 5:30b NKJV)

Are we seeking our own fleshly will or God’s holy will?

What are we to do?

Scripture tells us...

* “...do the will of God with all your heart.” (Eph. 6:6b NLT)
* “For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother.” (Mark 3:35 NKJV)
* “Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” (1 Thess. 5:18 NLT)
* “He who does the will of God abides forever.” (1 John 2:17b NKJV)

Just as Jesus, our nourishment “comes from doing the will of God.” (John 4:34 TLB)

Are we seeking the will of God with all our hearts?

What is the proper response of God’s people?

* To act with Godly behavior.
* To present our bodies as holy, living sacrifices to the Lord, not conforming to the world, and allowing the Lord to transform our way of thinking, as the Word says, “Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” (Rom. 12:2 NLT)
* To carry out what He reveals to us. The Word requires that we live “by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Matt. 4:4 NLT)

Learning to let go of our tight rein on our lives is essential; handing the reins over to the Lord and His will may seem scary but being in God’s will is the safest place on earth.

Isn’t it more advantageous to be in agreement with His will?

“Be very careful, then, how you live - not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.” (Eph. 5:15-17 NIV)

What is your response?

~~Lord, Your will be done!

Do you know you have a call on your life? Maybe you probably already know that. Or maybe you don’t know that. Or maybe you’ve been sensing that the Lord is calling you to something but you don’t know what it is. Or maybe you are searching for that calling.

Whether you are searching or not, you are called. As Christians, we are all called.

Paul says that God “called you to become His child” (1 Thess. 5:24TLB) and that “You also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ” (Rom. 1:6 NIV), “called into the fellowship of (God’s) Son, Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Cor. 1:9 NKJV).

So, what does the Word say about being called? We are…

* to “be all the more eager to make (our) calling and election sure.” (2 Peter 1:10 NIV)

* urged “to live a life worthy of the calling (we) have received.” (Eph. 4:1 NIV)

* “called to liberty.” (Gal. 5:13 NKJV)

* to be holy, “as the One Who called (us) is holy.” (1 Peter 1:16 Amp)

* to be “flooded with light so that (we) can see something of the future He has called (us) to share.” (Eph. 1:18 TLB)

* to be “of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous; not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that (we) were called to this, that (we) may inherit a blessing.” (1 Peter 3:8-9 NKJV)

Not the specific kind of calling you were looking for? Well, if we cannot step into the callings listed for us in the Word, how can we seek our life’s specific calling that the Lord desires for us to share with others?

God does have a distinct plan and purpose for our lives, a calling that only each of us can fulfill. So, how do you find out what it is? Think about what fuels the passion of your soul and what sparks the fire in your heart. What do you love to do that you would do even if no one thanked you?

God has called each of us to do certain things, to be His hands of help, comfort, or assistance to others in one capacity or another. If we are called according to His purpose, we share that calling with others. But if we do not do for others what God has called us to do, we hinder the fulfillment of His purpose. How are we then profitable to the Kingdom if we refuse to function in our calling?

Whatever your call may be, “the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.” (Rom. 11:29 NKJV) They are without change of purpose and bring no regrets.

Each calling is a ministry to others. The Lord called me late in my life to write for Him, something I would never have guessed. It is now my passion and I wholeheartedly and humbly obey His call.

In your seeking, you may find a surprise calling on your life, at any time of your life. It may merely be to witness to your next door neighbor or serve the homeless at a local shelter. God’s list is endless.

Rest in the knowledge that the Lord will tell you at just the right time, so that “you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.” (Eph. 1:18b NKJV)

Whatever God calls you to do, “work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.” (Col. 3:23 NIV)

May you be blessed as you obey God’s calling on your life and may others know the benefit of your obedience.

An arborist meandered through the woods, examining the trees for their strength and readiness for service, which would make them suitable for greater purposes. Using his marker, he made his way through the woods, designating each tree to be cut down with a red X.

A few days later, the woodsman arrived at the woods, ax in hand to chop down the trees marked for reuse. Each tree stood tall and regal, sharing its beauty and life-giving shade with everything around them. Cutting them down seemed heartless as their beauty and usefulness still existed. Removing them from their comfy surroundings and placing them into new services struck at their very hearts.

But what happened to these glorious ones that received wounding with the agonizing blows of affliction? Each one went to the mill altering. But what were the destinations of these distressed ones? What new purpose awaited each one?

Their futures rested in the hands of master artisans, who lovingly reshaped them into…

…the resplendent instruments of a grand piano or a treasured violin for making beautiful music.

…the paper on which artists wrote great literary works that touched the hearts of others.

…sailing vessels, crafted for navigating the great seas.

…a stately pillar in a house of worship

Can you apply this to your life? Let’s see. Has your life ever gone well until the woodsman walked through it, rending blows of affliction and striking at your very heart? If you are a child of God, your life is marked with the Red X of the Lord, designating it for reuse at the discretion of the Master Artisan.

He will take the trials and affliction plaguing your life and turn them into new purposes for His glory. He will allow them to carve away at your life, making you…

…a fit instrument on which He plays beautiful music
…a blank sheet upon which He may write His message to touch the hearts of others
…a sturdy craft for navigating the great seas of life
…a stately pillar in His house of worship.

Do you feel you are suffering through cutting circumstances? Do you feel the ax of affliction, chopping away at your very heart? Remember, you’ve been marked with that Red X for reuse. The Lord has greater purposes in mind for your life, eternal purposes…for His glory, your blessing, and the benefit of others.

What are the greater purposes God is working in your life?

~~Blessings, Lynn~~

Whirring lawnmowers. Annoying blowers. This was how my morning started. How could I attain quiet for a conversation with the Lord?

I walked to my family room window and looked out. Bazillions of beautiful blossoms arrayed the trees, and, at the same time, spewed out their allergy-packed pollen as thick as fog, prompting tissues to peek out of all my pockets. A brisk breeze released the grip of the “helicopters” on the maple trees, as the tiny descendants concealed the ground in a blanket of ancestry.

These sights and sounds heralded the profusion of nature’s new, spring season.

As I stood there gazing at God’s hand of creativity, a brief, spring sprinkle fell delicately on our patio, animating the dried seedlings to hop and dance.

Giggling at the delightful sight of dancing seedlings, the thought crossed my mind: sometimes the blustery winds of a new season blow against us, and we succumb by loosening our grip on the Lord as our Vine of nourishment. In letting go, we find ourselves lying on the ground, disconnected from our fellowship with Him.

When this happens, we usually misunderstand the point of what has come our way. Yes, sometimes the enemy blows his hot blast of affliction upon us, but, other times, it is God’s sweet breath of purpose.

Along with His wind of purpose, God occasionally sends showers, whether as gentle dews or great downpours as an answer to our prayers. Either way, we are not always hopping and dancing at the answer He provides.

When we learn to welcome, with open hearts, all the elements of each new season in our lives, whether heat, cold, rain, or drought, as being the gentle guidance of the Lord to rejuvenate us and bring about a new season of growth in our lives, praise and thanksgiving will begin to emerge from deep within us.

Starting down in our toes, praise will to bounce around, creep up into our throats, and dart out, causing our spirits to delight and dance before the Lord.

When you feel like a dried seedling lying on the ground, do you welcome the spring rains of circumstance that fall upon you? Do you understand that they are sometimes the answers to prayers? Do you dance in praise to the Lord for them?

As the saying goes…

Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass...it’s about learning to dance in the rain.

Joel 2:23 says, “Rejoice in the LORD your God! For the rains He sends are an expression of His grace.” (The Life Recovery Bible NLT)

Prayer: Lord, May I recognize those things that come into my life as being elements of guidance and growth so that I may follow Your lead and welcome them with dancing feet in praise and thanksgiving. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

~~Blessings, Lynn~~