Prayer is a very important part of our life as a child of God; therefore, Paul wrote: “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17). A child of God should always be prepared and in a state of mind to pray. It should be one of the most natural things in the life of a Christian! But, what do we pray for; do we pray for things we know are going to take place, or do we pray for things that we know are not going to happen? Is there a third possibility as we look at things for which we should pray? Here recall the words of Jesus: “Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10). Did Jesus really believe, even as he taught his disciples how to pray, that one day God’s will would “be done in earth, as it is in heaven?”
God, who had looked upon his creation and said: “And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. (6) And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart” (Gen. 6:5-6). Here is a good place to address the “repented” as some have misunderstood it. It is the Hebrew “naw-kham’” and means: to sigh, that is, breathe strongly; by implication to be sorry. Starting with the sinless two, Adam and Eve, whom God created had not only sinned themselves, but from them, had grown a world “that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” Sad, is a word that does not express the mind of God, so Moses wrote: “it repented the LORD that he had made man” and “it grieved him at his heart.” Throughout history, man has been better, but not worse as a people. Jesus knowing this and knowing that “few there be” that find the “strait gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life” (Matt. 7:14). Jesus knowing this truth, how could he teach his disciples to pray: “Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven?”
Could the answer be that Jesus is teaching us to pray according to God’s desires? Therefore, we ask, just what is God’s desire for mankind? Let us here read Paul’s words which express the desire of God our Saviour: “Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim. 2:4). Do the desires of “God our Saviour” express reality? Will all men be saved?” No, God knows that like in the case Noah’s time, that only few will in reality be saved; but this reality does not change his desire as expressed by Paul. Therefore, let us pray in a manner that expresses our desires; not necessarily the reality of things, not even the expectation of things; but our desires for the way we would like for things to be: “Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven?” Then, work toward our desires that our prayers may be in harmony with our work. This is what “God our Saviour” did as Jesus died upon the cross for this very purpose; that all mankind could be saved! When Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, notice his words: “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt” (Matt. 26:39). First, this was the humanity of Jesus surrendering to the will of Deity; second, it was the will of the God the Father that Jesus died upon the cross, that all mankind could be saved; and third, at the very moment Jesus was praying, God knew that most people would never believe and obey the truth and be saved.
So, when we pray, just what is it that we expect to happen? Do we expect that God will move “heaven and earth” in order that our prayer becomes reality? Well, let us keep this in mind as we pray; when Jesus prayed, “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt;” just what did he then do? He surrendered himself to the will of God! If we never learn anything else about prayer, let us learn that it starts with a surrendered will, our will, to the will of God! Then, we live to the best of our abilities, a surrendered life, to the will of God. The more this is done, the more “Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” will become a reality! No wonder Paul wrote: “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17).
Prayer is more about us changing, then the world changing! On the other hand, if we pray for our leaders, as Paul wrote: “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; (2) For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty” (1 Tim. 2:1-2); we must work toward this objective! The will of God, “Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” becomes a little closer to becoming reality!
— Frank R. Williams