Lord, Teach us to Pray According to Your Will!
"Jesus said to them, 'You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.'" (Matt 20:23).
The mother of James and John has just come to Jesus, begging Him to grant her two sons the positions of honor in God's kingdom. After a brief exchange, where Jesus asks James and John if they will be able to suffer the same kinds of things He will have to suffer and they assure Him that they can, Jesus goes on to say: "to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father."
There are certain things that Jesus cannot grant! He couldn't grant this request, for it was beyond His power! Jesus cannot offer something to someone that God has already prepared for another!
Are we any different from the mother of James and John? When we pray for selfish things, are we not being just as egotistical as the sons of Zebedee? When we pray outside of the will of God, are we asking for things that Jesus cannot grant? Are we asking for things that God has perhaps prepared for another?
Lord, take away my selfish spirit and grant in its stead a spirit of servitude. Lord, may I put aside self completely, so that I may pray according to your will, not my own! For only when it's in the will of the Father is it within your power to grant!
Love in Christ,
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart,
Moderator, The Nugget, Scriptural Nuggets (
www.sermonillustrator.org/minisermons/ ), Answers2Prayer Ministries,
www.Answers2Prayer.org ,