Not My Will

I have a new hero. I met her earlier this year and immediately was jealous of her. I knew from the minute I saw her that she would be amazing. And of course I was right. She is beautiful, intelligent, funny, adventurous, talented, loves Jesus and is a great friend. But what amazes me most about her is that over the past several months I have watched her say "no" to something I know she wanted because she wanted the will of the Lord for her life more, and that is, I believe, one of the hardest things to do in this life. There was something that she wanted, and could very easily have had, but before diving into it, she stopped and decided to pray, asking the Lord what His heart for her was. At this point, she is now experiencing loss, not receiving what she wanted (and even losing the valued bit that she had). However, she continues to look to the Lord. She believes (and rightly so!) that what He has for her is better than what she wanted for herself. But her heart is still broken, and she continues to grieve her loss.

This is what amazes me. This is what I strive for. This is my desire for myself and for everyone else. And this is what I believe the Lord wants. Not that we would never be happy or have what we want, but that we would say, just as He said in the garden, "Not my will, but Yours be done." This is what pleases Him. It may very well break our hearts, but it is in the brokenness that He comes to us and shows us who He is. This is where depth and strength come from. This is where character is made, and from that springs hope, the anchor of the soul.