let not my will, but yours be done
Luke 22:43
Let Your will be done, not mine.
When I say this prayer, with some sincerity and wholeheartedness, what happens?
For me, there is a shift into that which already allows all that is. A shift into what I am. A shift into what we can call Big Mind / Big Heart.
There is a release out of my smaller views and concerns. A softening. A release out of being completely caught up in it.
And there is an opening for receptivity, gratitude, and recognizing all as already grace.
And what happens in a more specific sense?
My will is the will of the one taking itself to be a separate being. It’s what comes when I am caught up in my very human reactions. We can say it comes from (blind) identifications with thought, or when thoughts are believed, or from emotional issues and trauma, or reactivity to own experience. All those are ways of talking about what is, in essence, the same.
Your will is what is, what’s here, what happens. It’s how existence is both “inside” and “outside” of me as a human being. It’s all there is.
When I say this prayer, there is a shift in perspective, or a shift in context. There is an acknowledgment that this is already God’s will. There is a shift more into what I am, into Big Mind / Big Heart.
And within this new context, I am still responsible for my own actions as this human being. I am still responsible for being
So when I pray let your will be done….
It’s an invitation to notice that all already is God’s will.
It opens for receptivity, gratitude, and awe.
It moves my center out of this human being and more into Big Mind / Big Heart.
It helps me step back, shift out of small views, and look at the bigger picture and what is more kind and wise in the situation.
Sometimes, it requires a crisis before we do this. In our daily life, we may – without noticing – live from our will, and it works relatively well. Then a crisis comes, we notice that “our will” is no longer enough or what’s called for. So we pray let your will be done and invite in grace and everything that comes with it.
We remind ourselves of reality. All is God’s will. All is grace. And when I remind myself of this, it’s easier to shift out of my small concerns and find what’s kinder and wiser in the bigger picture.
What that is depends on the situation. Often, it involves forgiving myself. Finding gratitude for life itself. Finding some trust in life as it is. Stepping back from my small and very human concerns. Connect with my knowing and inner guidance. Perhaps find what seems the kindest and wisest for everyone
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Initial notes….
- Let Your will be done
- my will = what comes from identification
- aka beliefs + emotional issues, trauma + reactivity to our own experience (and being caught up in it)
- your will = what is, what happens
- “inside” and “outside” of me, as this human being
- all there is
- a shift in perspective, shift in context
- an acknowledgment that all is already God’s will
- a shift into Big Mind / Heart
- and still, responsble for my own life, my own choices and actions (make them as well as I can)
- when pray
- invite in this shift, this noticing
- invites receptivity, sincerity,
- step back, step out of small views, look at the bigger picture, what’s more kind and wise in the situation
- ….
- my will = what comes from identification