Devotional Thought
Not My Will But Thine…,
As Jesus’ followers, this week often causes us to reflect on Him as our suffering Savior. While we consider His clandestine arrest, mockery of a trial, and the physical brutality Jesus experienced, let us not forget His time in prayer, and ultimately His full surrender to the completion of His mission. It was there, in the garden of Gethsemane, that Jesus won the battle and secured our salvation.
The gospel accounts, record that after celebrating Passover with His closest friends, they went to the garden where Jesus asked them to pray, and then He withdrew a short distance from them to have His own prayer time. Three times Jesus prays. The first time He asks for a way out, and concludes, “not my will but thine.” The following two times Jesus resigns Himself to the fact that if there is no other way, then so be it, and again declares, “not my will but thine.” Simple words, but oh how difficult. So difficult that Luke records the stress of Jesus saying yes to God’s Will, as causing Him to sweat drops of blood.
In our own lives, submission isn’t easy. It requires humility, surrender, love, and trust. Often when we seek God’s Will, our prayer is couched in ways that tell God, “not your will, but mine.” We will do His Will when it fits our schedule, our plans, our convenience. But what about when it doesn’t? Jesus has given us our example. When God calls us to follow, to go, to give, to love, may we all be more willing, like Jesus, to say, “not my will but thine.” And like Jesus, that decision will give us victory in advance of the trials we will ultimately face.
Challenge : Read and spend time in your Bible thinking about Matthew 26:36-46, Mark 14:32-42, Luke 22:39-46, and John 17, as well as the chapter, Gethsemane, in The Desire of Ages, a book by Ellen G. White.
God bless you as you consider the battle Jesus has won for you.
Pastor Jim Bollin
Jim and his wife Sherri have four grown children and two grandchildren. You’ll find that they are family oriented, kid friendly, enjoy good food, relish their time with family and friends, and the simple blessings of life.
Growing up as a Christian, Pastor Jim joined the Adventist church in 1989, and entered the pastoral ministry in 1995. Since graduating from Andrews Seminary in 1999, he has pastored in both the Oregon and Idaho Conferences.
Jim’s role here at Castle Rock Church is all about serving our community as a whole, because he believes that Jesus’ teachings are meant to be lived out in our daily lives. He believes our faith grows best when we get involved in loving and serving others as Jesus did, with the unique gifts He has given us all.
Pastor Jim looks forward to helping you discover where and how God has called you to love others, in Jesus’ name.
Contact him at pastorjim@meadowglade.com