There were three men who were on a deserted island. One day a magic lamp washed up on the shore. When they rubbed it, a genie popped out and granted them each a wish. The first man, immediately said, “I wish I had a yacht so I could sail away.” POOF! There was a yacht and the man left. The second man said, “I wish a helicopter would pick me up and take me home.” POOF! There was a helicopter overhead, that let down a rescue basket and took the man away. The genie then turned to the third man, who was scratching his head. “Do you have a wish?” The man, still scratching his head, said, “I’m not sure…I wish those other two guys were here to help me make up my mind.”
POOF!
What’s the old saying? Be careful what you wish for, young man…it will surely come true.
Have you ever looked back and thought, “I’m glad that wish didn’t come true?” Whether it was a person you wanted to date, a job you applied for, or any number of situations. Or maybe the opposite…maybe you think, “Why did I want this so much?”…when things aren’t turning out the way you thought they would.
This morning, while reading in the book of Matthew, I thought about the above quote. The mother of the sons of Zebedee came to Jesus with her sons and knelt down, making this request, “Grant that for one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”
Jesus tells her that she doesn’t know what she is asking. He asks, “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?” They told him they could, and Jesus says they will indeed drink from his cup, but those places are not his to give. That the Father has prepared them for whom ever He prepared them for.
And so, this question came to me: Am I asking God for His will in my prayers or am I willing God to do what I want? There are so many times that, instead of asking God to do what He knows is best, that I try to impose my own solution to the requests I make. C.K. Chesterson wrote, “Obedience is what saves us from following the wrong decisions.” So how do I be obedient to God’s will?
I have to know God’s will. How do I do this? By reading His word. Through prayer and contemplation. By going regularly to receive the sacrament of Reconciliation and Eucharist. By seeking spiritual direction. And most of all…by listening.
I don’t know how many times Jim said, as our boys were growing up, “I’ve seen the boss’ job…and I don’t want it.” (I think I was supposed to be the boss in this scenario…lol) But don’t we try to take on God’s job when, instead of making our prayers and petitions known, we follow them up with instructions on how He should resolve them?
Author Anais Nin wrote, “We don’t see things as they are; we see things as we are.”
God, open the eyes of our heart to see you in all things and
to accept your infinite wisdom for our lives. Amen.
Writes 4 Him 
When I try to do things in my time and my way, the results are not good. I have learned the hard way, through some unpleasant experiences, that God’s timing is best- and He knows what I need much better than I do. I ignore this at my peril.
LikeLike