Matthew 6:10
“Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
Adebola was eager to be useful so whenever the community gathered to pray, he would always be the first to speak and the last to stop. His prayers were always long, passionate, and detailed. He told God exactly what should be done, how it should be done, and when it should happen. In his heart, he believed this intensity proved his faith.
One evening, as he finished praying, an elderly brother listened quietly to him and after a moment of silence, the brother asked Adebola calmly, “My dear brother, when you pray like this, where does God actually fit into your plan?”
The question made Adebola uncomfortable.
Then, the elder shared a story with him. He spoke of a messenger who was sent to deliver a letter from a king. Instead of opening the letter to read its content, the messenger assumed he already knew the king’s intention. He went on and began announcing his own message, with confidence that his passion would please the king. But when he returned, the king asked only one thing: “Did you read what I wrote?”
Adebola understood the point immediately: prayer is not meant to be a presentation of your agenda but a submission to God’s will.
Jesus taught His disciples to pray, not by giving them poetic words, but by revealing heaven’s order. “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name”, making them understand that prayer begins with reverence to the Father.
“Your kingdom come” – prayer aligns with God’s rule.
“Your will be done” – prayer surrenders human desire to divine intention.
Disciples don’t pray randomly; they pray according to divine instruction because Kingdom kind of prayer is not about informing God of what we want, but being formed by what He wants. When prayer loses pattern, it loses power. Once our prayer ignores God’s priorities, then, it has become noise.
Jesus never used prayer to persuade the Father, but to align with Him. In Gethsemane, His deepest agony was not resolved by insisting on escape, but by surrendering with the statement “Not My will, but Yours be done” – the same thing He earlier taught His disciples to pray in every situation and that is the highest form of prayer every disciple must come to understand and be willing to pray.
Beloved, a disciple who has not learnt to be aligned to the will of God will pray sincerely, passionately and for long, yet such will walk inaccurately, but a disciple who prays as Jesus taught will move in sync with heaven, even when the path is costly.
It might be hard but it is not impossible – make all efforts to be perpetually aligned to the will of God and the Lord shall surely form you into becoming more like Him.
PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Before presenting your requests today, deliberately acknowledge God’s holiness and submit your plans to His will. Don’t just ask “Lord, what do I want?” but “Lord, what are You doing?”
CONFESSION: Father, I surrender my desires, plans, and ambitions to You. I confess that prayer is not for enforcing my will but for aligning with Yours. Let Your kingdom define my priorities and Your will govern my decisions. Deliver me from self-centered praying and teach me to pray as Your Son taught. I choose alignment over convenience and obedience over impulse, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
RELATED SCRIPTURES: Matthew 6:9–13, Luke 11:1–2, John 5:30, Romans 12:1–2, 1 John 5:14
WEEKLY BIBLE READING: Genesis 4
