Mark Chapter 10: Verses 35-39 (NIV-UK)
Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. ‘Teacher,’ they said, ‘we want you to do for us whatever we ask.’
‘What do you want me to do for you?’ he asked.
They replied, ‘Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.’
‘You don’t know what you are asking,’ Jesus said. ‘Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptised with the baptism I am baptised with?’
‘We can,’ they answered.
Jesus said to them, ‘You will drink the cup I drink and be baptised with the baptism I am baptised with…’
Revelation Chapter 1: Verses 9-10 (NIV-UK)
I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet…
Sometimes when we’re younger, we can say or do things that make us cringe when we look back on them when we’re older. James and John, just like their friend Peter, didn’t at this point fully understand Jesus’ Ministry and God’s plan. They were full of hopes for how they thought things would go. Jesus knew differently, and tried to explain it to them. He didn’t reproach them for their request, although the other disciples were indignant. He knew what lay ahead. I wonder if John, in his place of exile on Patmos, looked back with a wry smile or a cringe when he thought of that request, many years before.
We can sometimes bring our own thoughts and plans to God and ask Him to bless them, without giving consideration to what God’s plans are. Often, they are poles apart. Thankfully He will deal graciously with us, even if He has to say no to the thing that we are asking Him to do. He knows the plans He has for us after all, and they are always better than ours. Perhaps we too will look back and smile or grimace at the requests we have made. But, with the benefit of hindsight we will be able to see God’s hand in the direction we have gone.
Dear Lord,
Thank You for dealing with our requests with mercy and grace, even when You have to say no. Help me to remember that Your ways and plans are always better than mine, and not to dwell on my disappointment if those plans are different from mine. I ask in Jesus’ Name. Amen.