Hi, this is Shaun Garner, pastor of Winnfield 1st Assembly of God and I would like to share an experience I had a few years ago. As we draw close to Easter weekend I’m reminded of a time my wife and I were able to visit the garden of Gethsemane. It was a beautiful garden full of flowers, and massive olive trees. Our guide suggested we spend time in individual prayer somewhere in the garden and pray we did. As I bowed to the ground, my mind immediately went to Matthew 26:36-46. This scripture is right before Jesus was betrayed and arrested, he came to the garden to seek God for his personal desire which in short was “ father I would like not to die this way.” I’ve heard some selfish prayers, but this doesn’t seem that selfish to me. Jesus’ best friends, his disciples, had fallen asleep several times in this important last few moments of our Lord and Savior‘s life. He had the cross and all that it would entail on his mind, the thought of being betrayed by one of his best friends, and he laid it all out, his will and desire before the father! But he didn’t stop there, he goes on to say,” if this is the only way, not my will but yours be done.”
Wow!! This powerful prayer encourages me, in that it’s OK to bring our will before the father, to ask for the things we desire, but then understand that we need to leave our desire at his feet, our will before him. We need to, as Jesus beautifully displayed, ask God for his will to be done, not ours. Sometimes we find out that our will and desire don’t come to pass, but understand, that God has a greater plan.
Thank heaven there’s a greater plan! Because of his will, and Jesus his obedience to the cross, we can be forgiven and set free from a sin debt that we could never pay on our own. I’ll leave the thought I had at that moment with you, how great it is to understand, that there is a greater plan, God‘s plan. We don’t have to understand the why and how, we just need to know he has our best interest at heart!!
I love you in Jesus’ name!!
