A Devotional Thought
by Lois Coady
“Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
Most of you know that I love the Lord’s Prayer. Sometimes people will criticize the use of it saying it is a short cut to taking time to really commune with God. For me though, it takes me to a very special place. A place that feels comfortable, warm and just like home.
Now, part of this is because I have been praying the prayer for close to 60 years. I memorized the Lord’s Prayer in Sunday School when I was a small child and probably earned gold stars for learning it along with the other children. But it also reminds me that Jesus Himself used this prayer to demonstrate “how” we should pray after one of His disciples asked that question. It is a wonderful template for how we can communicate with and grow closer to God by acknowledging His sovereignty and making our petitions known to Him.
The two lines I love in the prayer are,
“Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
In Luke 17:20-21, Jesus responded to the Pharisees who asked Him when the Kingdom of God would come:
“The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be
observed
nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’
because the kingdom of God is in your midst.”
Jesus was referring to Himself! The Kingdom of God was present in that moment standing right in front of the Pharisees. A
s Christians, this spiritual and eternal Kingdom lives within us in the person of Jesus Christ too. We have hope for today and the future in Christ. Isn’t that exciting?
“Thy will be done ...”
What I want for my life is God’s will and I pray that others desire that for their lives too. I have enough life experience to know that when I pursue my own desires they rarely pan out and even if they do, they fall short of my hopes and dreams. I have also learned that God’s will for me is always perfect, because He loves me dearly and only wants what is best for me (Romans 12:2). So, pursuing His will for my life is my heart’s cry while I walk on this earth. I can approach God in confidence and ask anything according to His will and know that He hears me (1 John 5:14).
“… on earth as it is in Heaven.”
I suspect when Jesus used these words, he was referencing how we should live our lives here on earth the way we understand our eternal life in Heaven will be. Based on everything we read, heaven is a beautiful place where we will be in full fellowship with God. It is a place where we will spend all our time worshipping, rejoicing and praising God for His blessings. It is a Kingdom of love and grace that is not of this world (John 18:36a).
So, now that we better understand these two lines of the Lord’s Prayer, let’s try praying them together. I encourage you to use your own words, but have provided mine as a guide, please pray with me:
“Father, I thank you for the Kingdom of God
that I experience through Jesus each and every day.
I ask that your Kingdom come again soon
to the rest of the world through Jesus.
Dear God, more than anything else,
I desire that Your will be done in my life.
I know that You love me and Your will for me is always perfect.
My desire is to live for You each day that I walk this earth
and it is with great anticipation that I wait to join you in Heaven.
I love you, Lord. Thank you for loving me. Amen.”
Continue to fully surrender yourself to God each day this week telling God how much you want his will be done in our church and in our neighborhoods and, most of all, in your life.
