God’s Will Or Ours?

Hi, I have a friend who watches a lot of TV “preachers” and he was telling me that when you pray, if you state let God’s will be done after you have made a request of God, that will ultimately cancel your prayer. Where does this teaching come from?

Q. Hi, I have a friend who watches a lot of TV “preachers” and he was telling me that when you pray, if you state let God’s will be done after you have made a request of God, that will ultimately cancel your prayer. He learned this from one of those televangelists.

Where does this teaching come from?? Aren’t we supposed to pray in God’s will? If it isn’t within God’s will for us, won’t He just say no anyway? He already knows what we need and even what we want before we ask for it.

I don’t think it is a very good idea to try and exert my will over God’s will anyway. He knows the beginning to the end, I believe we should always look to Him for direction, and believe that when we pray, He will give us the best answer which is usually not an answer we always expect since our ways are not His ways and our thoughts are not His thoughts. Thank you.

A. Some believe that God answers our prayers according to our faith and that if you agree to let God’s will be done, it shows you don’t have very much faith that you’ll get what you’re asking for. So in effect, they believe that God says, “Well if you don’t care very much about it, then neither do I,” and forgets about it. This is an incorrect interpretation of passages in the gospels where Jesus says things like, “According to your faith it will be done to you.” (Matt.9:29)

As believers we should know that God’s will for us will always be preferable to our will for ourselves. There are some things where God’s will is already known. For example we wouldn’t ask for salvation, “If it’s your will” because we already know it’s His will. It’s the same with healing. Isaiah 53 promises us that because of His suffering and death we can be healed. This doesn’t mean that we can live forever or that we shouldn’t consult a doctor, but that we can pray for healing in confidence that it’s His will that we be healed.

But when it comes to a new pick-up truck or a better job or a date with the good looking person we’ve just seen, it’s better to remind ourselves (God doesn’t need reminding) that God is working all things together for our good (Romans 8:28), and by asking for His will in a matter, we’re not showing a lack of faith, but a willingness to yield our will in favor of His. Most of the time when we say, “If you’re willing” He replies, “I am willing.”