Thy Will Be Done

Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. – Matthew 6:10

One of the hardest lessons of faith for us to learn is to submit to the Lord’s will by conforming our wills to His. This is so challenging because, from our earliest days, we have plans, hopes, and dreams for ourselves and our families that seem good and right to us. Moses experienced this struggle in Deuteronomy 3, where he pleaded with God to let him enter the Promised Land — “Please let me go over and see the good land beyond the Jordan, the good hill country and Lebanon” (Deut. 3:25).  He desperately wanted to lead the Israelites into the Promised Land. But God refused to allow him to do it, reiterating it authoritatively by saying, “Enough from you; do not speak of this matter again. Go up to the top of Pisgah and lift up your eyes westward and northward and southward and eastward, and look at it with your own eyes, for you shall not go over this Jordan” (Deut. 3:27). Moses had to learn that even when we cannot understand God’s purposes, His will remains wise, good, and sovereign. Submission did not mean that his desires were wrong; it meant they were God’s will for him. The same is true in our lives. 

When Jesus taught us to pray, “Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven,” he instructed us to place our plans, disappointments, and unanswered prayers into the hands of our loving heavenly Father. We submit by praying honestly, remembering that He sees what we cannot see and knows what we cannot know. We submit by trusting God’s wisdom, remembering that He sees what we cannot see and knows what we cannot know. We submit by obeying what He has clearly commanded, even when His providence does not unfold as we hoped. And we submit by releasing the outcome to Him, trusting that His purposes are greater than our own. Moses didn’t enter Canaan, but God’s promises did not fail. It was hard for Moses to learn that, and it’s equally hard for us. May we grow more comfortable praying, “Thy will be done,” as we follow Him more closely. 

Suggested Scripture Readings: 

• Matthew 6:1-15
• Romans 8:26-39

Questions for Reflection: 

1. What desire, plan, or unanswered prayer do you find most difficult to place under the words, “Thy will be done?”
2. How does remembering God’s character and faithfulness help you submit when His answer is different from what you hoped?