Connection Magazine, The Premier Good News Publication www.connectionmagazine.org

Thy Will..Not My Will
by Danita Harris

"Have thine own way Lord/ Have thine own way/ Thou art the potter/I am the clay. Mold me and make me/After thy will/While I am waiting/Yielded and still."

I've had to sing these words a million times lately as I go through a challenging period in my life. Notice that I said "challenging" and not "difficult". And with God's help I know that I will not only meet the challenge but overcome the obstacles that are in my way at this present time. Many times when we're in trying situations, we think we can handle it by doing things our way. But when we take matters into our own hands without seeking the counsel of God, we hit a brick wall every time. We have the best intentions and we believe we are doing the right thing, but in my life experiences it has proven to be best to yield to the Lord and let Him handle it. His way.

But let's be honest, it's hard for us to turn some things over to the Lord. Allowing ourselves to be clay for the Master to stretch and pull until we're molded into the shape He wants us to be is challenging. And yet we pray the Lord's Prayer and say "Thy will be done", but when that "will" is put in place we question it. We question it because it may not be the outcome that we would have liked or didn't come about the way we thought it would or should have. Praying for the will of God is one thing...accepting it is a whole different ballgame. You see sometimes when the will of God is being brought forth in your situation, you may feel some discomfort(and we don't like that) because it's going to test your faith and trust in Him. You're saying "Lord, come on in and do your will in my life" but you kind of add on to that sentence "just don't make it too challenging for me." It's like we want the blessings of God but we want it done our way and in our time. And God forbid if we have to go "through" to get "to" our blessing.

Have you become so hardened like a rock that you're unable to ask for and accept the will of God in your life? Or are you, like the song says, allowing the Lord to be the potter in your life.. molding and shaping you into a great person of God. Psalms 143:10 "Teach me to do thy will, for thou art my God! Let thy good spirit lead me on a level path." Some of us have been on a crooked and uneven path for so long that's it's become comfortable. So when you ask God to make those crooked places straight it's going to take you out of your "comfort zone". It may be a bit challenging at first, but there's so much joy that comes in knowing you are doing perfect will of God.

And what about the wait? Oh the waiting, the waiting, the waiting! Seems like forever doesn't it? We say "When Lord?, How much longer?, I can't take it anymore God! If something doesn't happen right now Jesus I'm going to lose my mind..up in here, up in here!" I'm not going in to detail about waiting on God( I wrote about that in last month's column) but the words of the song tells us to be yielded and still. The Bible tells us to "Be still and know that I am God". If you just reflect on God, the one who created you and loves you the most, it should comfort you that he's working everything out for YOUR good. He's not going to let you lose your mind, because he won't put more on you than you can bear. View the molding process as spiritual growth...not death. God is not trying to kill you, yet instill in you the things you need to carry out His will...if that's what you truly want.

My friends, I know this is not an easy thing to do. But as Christians, we ought to desire the will of God in our lives. Trust that His will WILL be the best for your life, but you must allow God to have his own way. Not my will Lord, but THY will be done.

Danita Harris is an anchor at WEWS News Channel 5 and can be seen daily on Good Morning Cleveland and News Channel 5 at Noon. She loves to write poetry, sing, and volunteer with The Girls Club of Ohio. Danita loves to encourage people in the Lord, and prays everyday that people would see the light of the Lord in her life.

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