Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will Be Done

This Sunday at Seneca Presbyterian will be the third of our six weeks set aside to truly listen to the prayer Jesus taught - this "hymn of hope for all humanity." We will look at two lines that are often taken together: thy kingdom come, thy will be done. When we hear these words, we have to remember that Jesus lived in a time that was dominated by power. Whenever anyone heard Jesus say "kingdom," thoughts turned immediately to Rome, for everyone lived under the "will" of Caesar. In these few words of simple prayer, Jesus was giving his followers a way to destroy Rome. They were to pray that the true Creator's kingdom would come, that the will of the true, holy, gracious, and loving God would be done. Because you see, if God is King than Caesar is not.

One pastor I worked with had a special habit whenever he led the congregation in praying the Lord's Prayer. If you listened carefully, you would hear a clear and distinctive emphasis on the word THY.

THY kingdom come; THY will be done.

It is a reminder to us that when we pray with Jesus for God to hold power in our world, we are also praying for God to hold power in our lives. So I ask you:

• What does God's will look like to you? How would that will be manifest in our world, in your world, and in your life?
• In your mind and heart and experience, what does God WILL to happen?
• Have you ever known a time when the will of God seemed powerful and controlling? 
• Have you ever known a time when the will of God seemed freeing and exciting? 
• What prayer of power do you offer for our world today that would usher in the Kingdom of God?