Submitting to God's will

A selection of verses showing we should accept God's will in our lives:

Eli the priest was prepared to accept the message God gave to the child Samuel:

1 Samuel 3 verses 16 - 18

16 Then Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son!” 
He said, “Here I am.” 
17 He said, “What is the thing that he has spoken to you? Please don’t hide it from me. God do so to you, and more also, if you hide anything from me of all the things that he spoke to you.” 
18 Samuel told him every bit, and hid nothing from him. 
He said, “It is the LORD. Let him do what seems good to him.” 
 

Job accepted the trouble that God sent in his life:

Job 1 verse 21

21 He said, “Naked I came out of my mother’s womb, and naked will I return there. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the LORD’s name.”

The Lord Jesus Christ is the best example of submitting to what God wants despite not wanting to do so:

Mark 14 verses 35 - 36

35 He went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass away from him. 36 He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible to you. Please remove this cup from me. However, not what I desire, but what you desire.” 
 

The letter to the Hebrews encourages us to accept the discipline that God sends because it is for our good:

Hebrews 12 verse 9

9 Furthermore, we had the fathers of our flesh to chasten us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much rather be in subjection to the Father of spirits, and live?

We should realise that sometimes our plans may not happen if they are not according to God’s will:

James 4 verses 13 - 15

13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow let’s go into this city, and spend a year there, trade, and make a profit.” 14 Whereas you don’t know what your life will be like tomorrow. For what is your life? For you are a vapour that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away. 15 For you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will both live, and do this or that.”

The apostle Peter tells us to humble ourselves under God’s mighty hand:

1 Peter 5 verse 6

6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time,

These chapters have links to this theme:

 
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