Then as I looked, I saw a door standing open in heaven, and the same voice I had heard before spoke to me like a trumpet blast. The voice said, ”Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after this.” And instantly I was in the Spirit, and I saw a throne in heaven and someone sitting on it. Rev. 4:1-2 (NLT)
For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. Phil. 2:13 (ESV) “I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good.” Jer. 29:11 (NLT)
Dear heavenly Father, on a regular basis you seem to find great joy in reminding me how little control I have over anything—over the number of my days and the quality of my health, over circumstances I don’t like and people I do love, over the many blessings you do give me and the difficult stories I wish you wouldn’t write for me.
And you know what, Father? I’m good with all of that, as long as you keep giving me an unobstructed, undiminished, 20/20 sighting of you sitting on your throne, ruling over all things. I don’t really need a timeline of when everything is going to be okay, or a sneak preview of what it’s going to look like. All I need to know, in my heart of hearts, is that you are at work for your pleasure in my life, and that your plans for me (and all your children) are good—even when in the moment, it might seem otherwise.
Since you have given Jesus for our perfect and full salvation, why would I ever believe that you would withhold anything from me, central to your will for my life and the outworking of your glory in the world? You promise sufficient grace, not the satisfaction of my agenda. You promise Christlikeness, not a hammock and a cool breeze. You promise full redemption, not immediate relief. Father, I want what you want. So very Amen I pray, in Jesus’ kind and glorious name.