The demand of the hour is that we heighten our obedience. The agenda of God is being made so clear so that we would neither run with uncertainty nor fight as one who beats the air (1 Cor. 9:26) but walk circumspectly as wise (Eph 5:15) and end up in the right destination. One of the clear instructions that have been handed over to us this year is to do the will of God on earth as it is done in heaven. Jesus, in teaching the disciples how to pray, taught them how not to pray. We are not to pray as orphans or the heathen knowing fully well that God cares about our needs.
Most times we spend our energy on things that God wants to take care of because we do not believe that God cares about our needs. We also fail to trust God because we, oftentimes, put our trust and reliance on resources of men. We fail to focus on God alone because we do not believe that if we focus on doing the will of God, all other things will be taken care of. This is why we rather focus on taking care of other things than tending to the will of God. The Bible makes us understand in Matthew 6:8 that our Father knows the things we need before we ask of Him.
It is important that we believe this scripture thoroughly so that we would be able to throw our weight on God and seek His will with singleness of heart. The solution to the challenges and needs that we face is to grow above them. Inability to trust God for your needs to be met is a sin even believers commit. Jesus taught His disciples what and how to pray because the manner of prayer is the manner of our conversation. What we pray about shows what our passions are and what we hold dear in our hearts. Our prayers reveal what we are mindful of.
Jesus taught them to pray that the will of God be done in earth as it is in heaven. As followers of Jesus, we must follow after what He calls important. Our exposures as we grow up build in us expectations for things on earth that pose hindrances to focusing on the will of God. Living by the expectations of men is the reason we fall short of God’s will. Like mere men fall under pressure to become what the world has defined that they should become at different points in their lives and are sad when they do not live up to such expectations. We should be more focused on becoming the expectations that God has for us. We should judge ourselves by how much we are attaining landmarks in the spirit such as overcoming malice, anger, envy, becoming blameless.
Man was made to live by words. It is by the word that the will of God is revealed. Our Lord Jesus emerged by the words He heard, did and became. Jesus’ reply to the devil implied that He would rather live by the word of God than eat bread. There is more to the life of a man than eating bread. Man needs more than the physical supply of bread to become the man God wants him to be. This is why Jesus taught his disciples to labour not for the meat that perishes (John 6:27).
God is interested in raising a divine man much more than anything else. The raising of the divine man is tied to doing the will of God. It is not easy for man to do the will of God because it is contrary to the will of the flesh. It is for this reason that whoever can do the will of God to its fullness will get a reward. We need to pray that the will of God be done on earth as it is in heaven because it is not a task that can be achieved by physical strength. By praying, we would amass grace to do the will. The will of God is so tough that Jesus, while He was in the days of His flesh, negotiated the will with the Father three times.
The will of God and the will of the flesh are contrary in nature. The will of God seeks to change and turn the flesh, however, the flesh does not like the process. To be able to do the will of God, we must be given to praying that the will be done because it is tough on the flesh. The destiny of humanity rested in Jesus' ability to do the will of God till the end. Jesus prayed for enablement to do the will of God. The will of God is not palatable to the flesh but it is the requirement for raising the true man.
In the place of prayer for the will, we should pray that we would encounter revelations that will cause us to do the will of God in all areas of our lives which include; esteeming our brethren better than ourselves, overcoming strife and envy. As we pray we would be persuaded to do the will through the revelation of the will and the commandments that come thereby. The emphasis on doing the will should not be taken casually because it is what would separate men from men in the next 5 years.
Rev. Kenneth E. Hagin said he encountered more revelation of God’s word in 6 months by praying that the eyes of his understanding be enlightened than he did burning the midnight candle studying the word for 12 years. Our growth is dependent on what we take important even in the place of prayer. Our ability to obey God’s demand to do His will this year will also determine how stressless we would come into provisions in the years to come.
Our prayer should be in this manner “thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). Our heart desires and prayers should be that we would receive instructions and find grace to obey them so we would be taken into higher heights in the Spirit that the Lord would have us access. May we find grace to overcome our challenges and obstacles that hinder us from doing the will of God. Amen!