Let Him Do What He Thinks is Best

Twice this week God brought to my attention the need for His will to be my will.

The thought first arose in a devotion from A Gentle Spirit.

Elizabeth Prentiss writes about times of suffering:

If you ask how you may know that you have truly consecrated yourself to Him, I reply, observe every indication of His will concerning you, no matter how trivial, and see whether you at once close in with that will.

In other words, if God’s will is for you to experience pain and suffering, do you embrace it knowing His will is best and trusting Him with whatever may come?

That makes me uncomfortable.

The second time this came to my attention was studying 1 Samuel.

Eli the High Priest had two sons, Hophni and Phineas.

His sons were evil men blaspheming God in the way they handled the sacrifices and offerings brought to them by the people of Israel.

Suddenly this sentence struck me hard like a baseball to the face:

But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for it was the will of the LORD to put them to death – 2 Samuel 25b.

It was the will of the LORD to put them to death.

God allowed them to be hardheaded and to sin against Him, because it was His will to put them to death.

I stopped reading at that sentence for awhile.

A long while.

Because, that one sentence is hard to swallow.

Accepting God’s will for pain and suffering as your own is one thing…
and a hard thing that should not be taken lightly.

But accepting His will for death is quite another.

Wouldn’t you agree?

What was Eli’s response once God revealed His will to him?

I know for a fact – on this very day – I can say with great certainty that I would not respond in this way.

This is far beyond spiritual maturity.

This is spiritual mastery.

And I don’t have it.

Not one bit of it.

But, dare I strive to want it?

Dare we stare God’s most painful unknown moments He has laid out for us and speak like Jesus spoke before His crucifixion?

saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.

These are the words of Christ.

They should be my words.

They should be yours.

Blessed be those who can say them now.

Blessed be those who endeavor to say them.