Once or twice over the years, Laverne and his brothers have encountered a horse that refused to be broken. For whatever reason, it would be a horse too strong-willed and too stubborn to respond to any of the usual or unusual methods of training, a horse determined not to submit to any authority, at any cost.
In those few cases, Laverne and his brothers had to admit defeat. A horse that can’t be broken is a dangerous animal, and as such, it is almost worthless. In the end it is often resold, and frequently put down. Its own stubborn nature, its refusal to submit to any control but its own, will hasten its demise.
As people with the ability to think and reason, we can see where a horse would be much better off by submitting to its master’s harness and command. But how often do we face situations where we are determined to have our own way, whatever the cost?
“There are two kinds of people,” C. S. Lewis writes. “Those who say to God ‘Thy will be done.’ And those to whom God says, ‘All right, then, have it your way.’”17
When I refuse to listen to God, refuse to submit to his commands, and refuse to be broken to his harness, the time will come when he will withdraw his presence from my life. In Genesis 6:3, God says, “My spirit shall not always strive with man.” I understand this to mean that if I insist on my own way, God will at some point cease to try persuading me otherwise. He will let me follow the path that I, by my stubborn resistance to his authority, insist on choosing.
But I’ll likely live to regret the consequences, the destination of the path, and the results of my own stiff-necked rebellion.
In verse 42 of today’s Scripture reading, Jesus prayed, “Not my will, but thine, be done.” The submission of Jesus to God’s divine plan gave us a chance at eternal life. He yielded to God’s plan. Why should we expect to do anything less?
In Hebrews 12:2, we find these words: “Jesus . . . who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross.”
He knew that doing his Father’s will would be far better for him than insisting on his own way.
When I stop insisting on having my own desires, and submit my stubborn will, God can at last begin to work in my life. When I yield to him and humbly say, “Thy will be done,” then I am “broken” for and harnessed to God’s work for God’s kingdom.
And only then can I begin to discern that God’s plan was far better than my own anyway.
| Prayer | Reflection |
| I know my will needs to be broken over and over, Lord. Thank you for the patience with which you work in my life. | Where is one place I know I must still submit to God? |