Thy will be done

I have been meditating again on the phrase “Thy will be done, on earth as in heaven” – particularly on the second part.

God’s will is done in heaven – I get that. We learn from the book of Job that Satan has no dominion, and must present himself before God, give an account, and ask permission before he can do anything. I imagine that in glory I will be in awe of the majesty of God, and free of vain and selfish ambitions.

To pray that the order of heaven be replicated on earth is no small request. My first thought about life now is, in theory, that God’s will ought to be done. But this notion tends to remain vague, like some underlying principle. So long as I am God conscious, praying and reading, not intentionally and unrepentantly sinning etc., there is a lot of room left for me to make choices.

I am drawn to other biblical concepts like freedom in Christ, and that I have been entrusted with gifts to use them as I will, and will be accountable for the good works I choose to do.

Like you, I inhabit a world where my thriving is the assumed goal. My journey towards that goal is one of introspection, self-awareness of my passions and abilities, and making choices that bring those core values to their best expression.

It’s easy to see how one can syncretise our prevailing cultural assumptions with biblical ideas like freedom, gifting, calling, and human autonomy/responsibility. When you do you get a gospel something like ‘Jesus came that I might have life to the full (c.f. John 10:10)’.

Which seems a world away from the prayer “Thy will be done, on earth as in heaven”.

German sociologist Max Weber talks about the modern world as disenchanted. We have Entzauberung – de-magic-ified, or broken the spell and removed the mystique of the connection between God as the Lord of his earth – where his will is done.

Is there sparkle missing from your life? Perhaps it is that you are trying to do your will on earth, while leaving God’s will for heaven.