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Surrender
Brian Mashburn
October 19, 2008
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Making God's Desire Yours
p>I remember reading about a dad who bought a red bicycle for his young son, and hid it in his garage to store until Christmas. He then said, "Now my job is to get my son to want a red bicycle for Christmas!"
It's an imperfect analogy, but this is sort of what your Father in Heaven has done for you. He has purchased a "life" for you, and now His job is to get you to want that life. And while that boy could want something else for Christmas that would have no short or long term implications. God knows that for you to want any life other than the one He has purchased for you would be totally self-defeating for your spirit, your relationships, and your heart.
So when Jesus gets the chance to teach a "model" for prayer, he uses the opportunity to show us that we need to make God's will, our will.
He says to pray like this: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."
Do you see it? Your name. Your kingdom. Your will.
Now, He knows you have needs and desires, too. In the verse right before this prayer he says that the Father knows what you need before you ask Him. He knows, and Jesus will get to that. But before you can activate God to move on your desires you must have His.
Let me just ask you forthrightly: Do you want His name made famous? Do you have a burning desire to see His Kingdom advanced? Do you desire His will to be done in a real and practical way here on earth...in you?
Lesson 1 in Christ's school of prayer was that you must approach God in His heavenly fatherliness. But the very next lesson, while simple, may be hard...to believe that Father knows best and then want it above all else.