Did I mention that I am a control freak? I guess the Spirit is calling me to come to terms with the problem it causes between Him and me. He has asked me to go to the Word and read the Lord's prayer in the garden of Gethsemane, Matt 26:39-42.
The familiar words that come to my mind when I remember the passage is "not as I will but as You will". In this final momentous act of submission, the Savior constrained His flesh and condemned it to death on the cross and it represents quite a message to all of us.
But today the Spirit led me to the preceding thoughts and prayers from the Son's heart to the Father's Throne. IF...begins the sentence of petition. Vs 39, "If it be possible, may this cup be taken from Me". And again in Vs 42, "If it is not possible for this cup to be taken away".
I suddenly realize how few of my petitions begin with "If". That speaks volumes to me about the degree of "self" in my petitions. Most are "Lord, please do this or send that or don't allow this or that" and the emphasis is on my understanding of the need or to offset the agony of the situation not the emphasis on the Father's will IN the need or the Glory due Him for the resolutions given according to His Will.
It's so hard to even begin to understand how my flesh enters into my prayer life but this revelation by the Holy Spirit confirms that it does and can hinder the effective prayers of a righteous person. This is a sobering reminder that without the Spirit of Christ I can do nothing.
IF, changes the control button. When I start with IF, then I am willing to accept God's will and not push for my own. When I start with IF, the Spirit can truly have His way in the situation and this is a good thing because His perspective is so much higher, wider, and eternal in it's scope than any of our own. Only the Lord knows the end from the beginning and what He is after through the circumstances of our daily lives.
I wonder what wisdom and answers will come today IF in my petitions I start with "IF "?
The Spirit is calling. Can you hear Him?
The familiar words that come to my mind when I remember the passage is "not as I will but as You will". In this final momentous act of submission, the Savior constrained His flesh and condemned it to death on the cross and it represents quite a message to all of us.
But today the Spirit led me to the preceding thoughts and prayers from the Son's heart to the Father's Throne. IF...begins the sentence of petition. Vs 39, "If it be possible, may this cup be taken from Me". And again in Vs 42, "If it is not possible for this cup to be taken away".
I suddenly realize how few of my petitions begin with "If". That speaks volumes to me about the degree of "self" in my petitions. Most are "Lord, please do this or send that or don't allow this or that" and the emphasis is on my understanding of the need or to offset the agony of the situation not the emphasis on the Father's will IN the need or the Glory due Him for the resolutions given according to His Will.
It's so hard to even begin to understand how my flesh enters into my prayer life but this revelation by the Holy Spirit confirms that it does and can hinder the effective prayers of a righteous person. This is a sobering reminder that without the Spirit of Christ I can do nothing.
IF, changes the control button. When I start with IF, then I am willing to accept God's will and not push for my own. When I start with IF, the Spirit can truly have His way in the situation and this is a good thing because His perspective is so much higher, wider, and eternal in it's scope than any of our own. Only the Lord knows the end from the beginning and what He is after through the circumstances of our daily lives.
I wonder what wisdom and answers will come today IF in my petitions I start with "IF "?
The Spirit is calling. Can you hear Him?
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