I used to think it took a lot of guts to end a prayer with the words,"Thy will be done." Over the years of my spiritual journey, I have added the words to my prayers for good measure, but deep down, I was usually thinking..."Please let my will be done."

I guess it was a control issue, and I didn't want to lose mine. But as I've grown in my faith, I've realized that it's not about losing control. It's about yielding control to the One who knows best. C.S. Lewis once said, "There are two kinds of people: those who say to God, 'Thy will be done,' and those to whom God says, 'All right, then, have it your way.'"

I've experienced what it is like when God lets me have things my way, and I can tell you from experience that I wouldn't recommend it. So what makes me (and maybe a few others out there in the world) clutch so blindly to our "control?" I think somewhere along the way we've been deceived into believing "Thy will be done" is an invitation for disease or disaster - that praying these words will somehow induce a wave of Job-like catastrophes. But this is a false, and frankly twisted, view of our God, His character, and His plan for us.

Psalm 86:15 says, "But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness." With characteristics like love and faithfulness and compassion, then why should we doubt the nature of His will for us? His will is grounded in His goodness, and we should feel confident trusting our lives to Him. When His will doesn't make sense to us or when His will involves our own suffering, we should still feel confident yielding to His care.

Our God is sovereign and His will is perfect, and therefore, His way is far better than ours could ever be. As I said, I used to think it took a lot of guts to end a prayer with the words "Thy will be done." Now I think it takes more guts to not end a prayer that way.

Making It Personal:

• Ask God to search your heart and reveal to you any areas where you are still clinging to your own "control" and will. Ask Him to help you yield those areas to His will.
• Study passages of scripture that teach about selfishness. Ask God to rip out the selfish desires from your heart, including the desire to "have it your way."
• Begin praying for God's will to be done in the small areas of your life, and ask Him for the faith to trust Him in the large areas of your life.