Matthew 26:39 And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
This passage of scripture shows us in a nut shell, the way that each of us should submit our ways unto The Lord, either for approval or dismissal as God sees fit. In this instance it was Christ Himself in His role of a subordinate servant, who submitted a request to The Father for consideration, but included with that prayer were some of the most important words ever uttered by Christ, "Not my will, but thy will be done".
In the garden of Gethsemane, when the forces of evil were clamoring for Christ's life, Jesus stared into the dark abyss of retributive justice for all mankind, and the very thought that a fallen, created being would be allowed to tempt and abuse Him to the maximum, filled Christ's soul with dread. It was not a pretty sight nor prospect which Christ faced, for in the scriptures, His coming conflict with the prince of darkness was explicitly described in words that would cause any person to tremble. Let's read:
Isaiah 53:4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. 7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. ....... "for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
Yet in all of His agony, Christ submitted his way unto The Father, thus setting us an example of surrendering our desires and requests to God so that His will and not ours may be done. Often in our own experiences we try to force the hand of God to do our bidding, even when we know that it is not His will. An example of this tendency of ours to request our own will is seen in the way we sometimes go about selecting a spouse. God says in His word that we should not be unequally yoked with unbelievers, but we kneel and pray to God, asking him to go along with our plans to do the exact opposite. This is not the pattern Christ set for us, and we should be willing to follow in His footsteps, by allowing God to have His own good way in all aspects of our lives, so that His will and not ours may be done.
We therefore end with a passage of scripture which shows the results of allowing God to have His way, for He knows what's best for His children, and whosoever believes and trusts in Him will never be ashamed. Let's read:
Psalms 37:4 Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. 5 Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. 6 And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.
May God add His blessing to the doing of His word. God bless!