40 Days of Prayer and Fasting 2006 - Day 33

Focus: His Will versus Our Will
By Andrew Conteh, New Steps, Mercy Ships Sierra Leone

Scripture Reference:
“Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said “My gracious favor is all you need. My power works best in your weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:8–9).

Devotional:

It was on a hot Thursday afternoon in Lunsar, a northern town 120 km from Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone. A crowd of polio mobility impaired children and their parents were gathered outside our work center. Alone in one of the rooms of this building, I was quietly assembling a couple of PET units (Personal Energy Transportation) while my colleagues were busy seeing the patients outside.

While I was doing this job with a passion for the many children it would help, I suddenly began to ponder the theme of this year’s Mercy Ships 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting—“Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). I realized that each time you obey God, His kingdom is operating in your life the same way it does in heaven.

Can you imagine anybody in heaven telling God, “I will think about it” or turning a deaf ear? The last person who tried that was Satan, and we all know the consequence that followed.

“Thy kingdom come, thy will be done” simply means, “God, be fully in control. Let my steps be ordered by You. Let my decisions be based on Your approval alone. Let my choices be subject to Your veto. If you’re not Lord over all, then you are not Lord at all.” Be honest with yourself and reexamine the greatest mistake you have ever made in your life. Whose will were you operating in, God’s or yours? Did you ever consult Him? Did you wait upon Him long enough to hear what He had to say? Or did you disagree with the direction He gave to you, and so launched out on your own?

God’s will can be painful because He has only one plan for your flesh—death.
In 1 Corinthians 15:31, the apostle Paul said, “I die daily.” The end result of dying to self is abundant living.

When we pray “Thy will be done,” we are seeking the heart of God. He will never hide from us what is in His heart, if we are willing to listen. Our challenge is to submit and obey even when we do not fully understand His purposes.

Prayer Points:
* Pray for God-given grace to accept His will.

* Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to help you relax in the hands of God each time He gives you a new direction.

* Pray that God will reveal His heart’s desire for you.