Trust God's will

``NOT my will, but thine, be done,'' 1 Jesus said when he was facing crucifixion. During his greatest trial, the Master completely set aside human wants and acknowledged his willingness to let God's will be done. Jesus has been called the Way-shower, and rightly so. His teachings and works are practical, indispensable directives for his followers. At a turning point in my life I felt that the thing I most wanted was to let go of my fears and with full trust say, ``Father, Thy will be done.'' But I just couldn't stop the mental pushing and pulling. Then I found myself thinking about when Jesus made his declaration of trust. Arguing, I thought, ``Well, Jesus could yield to God's will because he knew how it all would turn out.'' Thinking further, I saw clearly that of greatest significance was Jesus' knowledge of God. He knew God was his Father, and that God is good. So Jesus felt secure in his sonship. ``The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand,'' 2 we read in John. Jesus knew that God's will for him could only be good. So he was able to trust God's will completely. I recognized that I too could trust in God's goodness. After all, the message of the Bible is for all mankind: ``Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God.'' 3 So, the safety and security of sonship were also mine. All fear left me and was replaced by calm trust in God. And as time proved, the next stage of my experience worked out successfully, and the time spent waiting for the full development was free of fear and pressure. Such childlike faith, and trust in God's will that all of us have good, is not wishful thinking. Rather, it's rooted in a knowledge of God as naturally and necessarily good. The Old Testament Bible message is often of God's goodness; yet the texts also suggest that God sent evil and cursed man. With the coming of the Messiah, the promised Saviour sent from God, the nature of God as wholly good was made clear. The message of Jesus to all of us is that God is a consistently loving Father, willing and able to meet our needs. Jesus never said God would punish us or send evil to test us or strengthen us. While he taught the necessity of taking up the cross and destroying sin, he also preached the power of God to heal and save. In one of his parables, Jesus illustrated the perfect fathering of God. In the parable of the prodigal son,4 the younger son left home and wasted his inheritance in sinful living. When he awoke to his sin, repented, and returned home, his father welcomed him. When the older son was jealous and felt unrewarded, the father was again compassionate. Each son was loved ceaselessly, without condemnation or partiality, and each received the instruction he needed in order to see the fullness and completeness of his father's love. In the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy5 defines God and includes in that definition some Biblically based synonymous terms for Deity: ``Principle; Mind; Soul; Spirit; Life; Truth; Love.'' 6 These show the fullness of His nature. If we think about God in this way, our understanding trust of His perfect ability to govern our lives is clarified. We begin to see, for example, that Principle's will for us is perfect and just; that Mind's will for us has to be intelligent; that Love can only bless! The promises of Jesus' teachings include us. No matter what trial we are facing, we can turn to God as our Father and completely and safely trust His loving care. 1 Luke 22:42. 2 John 3:35. 3 I John 3:1. 4 See Luke 15:11-32. 5 The Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science. 6 Science and Health, p. 587.