Thy Will Be Done
Dear Family of Peace,
I’m not sure there is a harder prayer in life to pray than, “Thy will be done.” Have you struggled with this kind of prayer in your life? For those of us who like to live under the illusion that we’re in control of things, it’s hard to pray this prayer, because it makes us own that we aren’t in control.
“Not my will, but yours be done, Oh Lord.”
With some honest self-reflection, we know why this is difficult. The truth is we don’t always know what the Lord’s will is and in my experience most people are uncomfortable with the unknown.
You know like, taking a call and moving your family to another state, to serve a congregation that seems really nice, but you don’t really know. You know like that.
But just like with the rest of my life, God has proven that He knows what He is doing. And once again I spent a lot of energy on worry and anxiety, which has once again proven to be a waste of time. God has provided a wonderful family of faith, an exciting ministry with a wonderful staff and lots of opportunity for mission. He has provided a blessed place to live. So maybe the next time I pray “Thy will be done”, I will be able to fully trust that His will, will be done and it will be what’s best for me. Maybe next time is the time, I let Him be God and I spend my time giving Him thanks and praise rather than worry and doubt. I’m optimistic, that next time will be the time.
But just in case, maybe it’s also good to realize that if the future and its uncertainty is once again be a little unsettling, maybe my “Thy will be done” prayer can at least be like the man who brings to Jesus his son with an unclean spirt and who cries out to Jesus…
“I believe, Help me with my unbelief.” Mark 9
In the time I’ve been serving as your Senior Pastor, I’ve had opportunity to meet with staff, congregational leaders and congregational members. I’ve been invited to 35 cottage meetings, gaining perspective from 207 of you. Through these meetings, the Lord has made it clear that Peace is at a Crossroads in ministry. The past was amazing, but the future is unclear, and the outcomes are uncertain. So let me remind you of something. There is one thing that IS certain as we look to the future… “GOD is faithful, His will is best, and in time He will make His will known.”
In the next year, we’re going to be spending a lot of time as a congregation evaluating ourselves and discussing the challenges we face. We will explore the opportunities God is providing and we will make our plans. We will do all of this, reminding one another of the wisdom of Proverbs 16:9 – which teaches, “The human heart plans the way, but the Lord directs his steps.” (NAB) We begin that work this weekend with a presentation I’ve prepared to share what I’ve learned about Peace in my first six months as your Senior Pastor.
Please join me for my “Pondering Peace Presentation” this Sunday – August 18th in the Community Room.
At this gathering I will share what I’ve learned about Peace from my meetings with staff, leaders and laity. I will share what I believe our immediate challenges are and the opportunities that exist within these challenges. I will share what we’re doing in the next few months to continue the work of self-reflection and evaluation and I will be answering your questions. If you are unable to make it, we will be recording this presentation, so please contact the church office if you would like to view it.
Since I accepted the call here at Peace my prayer has been the same. I have prayed that God would do two things among us…
#1 – That He would build and sustain a spirit of unity among us and excitement for His mission.
#2 – That He would make clear, what HE has for us to do in the years to come. (aka – Thy Will Be Done.)
If you would… Please join me in this prayer.
In His Grip, Guy Roberts, Senior Pastor – Peace Arvada
