Submission to the Father's Will
Greetings and good morning brothers and sisters. This is Dr. James Perry continuing with our series where we seek to explore the deeper meanings of our relationship with Jesus Christ. Over the years, the heavenly Father has revealed many revelations of spiritual truth to me, and I want to share them with you. This morning we will ponder our lives as we seek to understand the meaning of submitting to the Father's Will.
And now, sit back and listen to today's message.
Submitting to the Father's Will
"Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done in earth, as it is done in heaven." Matthew, Chapter 6,
Verse 10.
There is only one acceptable ending to the prayers of every God knowing son or daughter and that is: not my will but Your will be done. When we display such an attitude consistently and persistently, we allow and enable the Father's spirit to master our material minds and afford our souls supreme joy while freeing us from feeling alone. No matter how social we are-- how surrounded by family and friends--our inner life's journey is made without human friends and family. By submitting to the Father's will, we enjoy refreshing communion with Him.
The problem is this: the spiritual nature is born within our material minds and recognized by faith. We must recognize the superiority of the spiritual nature over the material nature, and then begin the long struggle to identity with this spiritual nature, which is our souls. We must allow this spiritual nature to subordinate our material nature in matters of morals and spirituality.
At first we resent being deprived of what we want. We rebel at the appearance of a cruel fate. We react to injustice with revenge, to delays with impatience, and return anger with more anger. In short, before we learn how to submit to the Father's will, we try and fight fire with fire. Gradually or by a supreme crisis, we begin to bear the beautiful harvest of the spirit--the spiritual fruits--which are the consequences of submitting to the Father's will. The fruits of the spirit are love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance.
As we learn to submit to the Father's will, we may find ourselves asking God to change someone else but wind up being changed ourselves. We plead with the Father to change our environment but eventually learn to change our reaction to the environment. We beg the Father to deliver us from sorrows and disappointments but learn how to overcome our misfortunes. We flee into prayer to escape from pain in our lives but return dedicated to doing the Father's will in spite of our pain. These personal changes are evidence that we are submitting to the Father's will and that our souls are growing.
Submitting to the Father's will is a way of learning how to accept and react to life on life's terms-- reality. Submission means resisting the temptation to flee from a disagreeable experience because what we run toward will be far worse than what we run from. It means doing our duty and accepting our lot when we are finished. It means understanding that disappointments are no more than rest stops along the way to the more enduring goals of life eternal.
Submitting to the Father's will means resisting the urge to worry, forsaking anxiety, exercising faith and trust. It means that we are never in a hurry but always on time. There is no need for haste, for whatever the Father has in store for us will always be made available. Submitting to the Father's will means not accepting abuse passively but reacting to it with all the love we can muster. It means being alert for opportunities to show love, kindness, mercy and forgiveness. Submitting means we prefer the Father's way to our own, even our slightest whim. But most of all, it means sincerely attempting to treat our brothers and sisters the way that Jesus treats them.
No areas of our life must be allowed to escape this all compelling drive. And though it may begin
as a faint flicker, the drive to submit soon turns into a raging fire that engulfs us. It may begin as no larger than the size of a mustard seed but it soon transforms into a large and great tree. Finally, submitting to the Father's will means that we desire to substitute our reality to the Father's reality; that is, we focus on that which is spiritual rather than material. We should always remember that the Father never strives with us but is always victorious. And since the Father expresses his will in power and with perfect patience, we should always be patient while His will unfolds.
This concludes today's message on submitting to the Father's will. We hope you find something in this message to ponder and pray about as you go about your day. Until next time, this is Dr. James Perry.
Your Kingdom Come,Your Will Be Done!
Inspirational Messages
By Dr. James Perry
Submission to the Father's Will
