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A woman prayed in 1907, "Lord, it doesn’t matter what you bring into our lives. Just have Thine own way with us." A poet, Adelaide A. Pollard, heard those words, and touched by the prayer, hurried home to write the words to the famous hymn, "Have Thine Own Way, Lord."
Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Thou art the Potter, I am the clay.
Mold me and make me after Thy will,
While I am waiting, yielded and still.
Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Search me and try me, Master, today!
Whiter than snow, Lord, wash me just now,
As in Thy presence humbly I bow.
Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Wounded and weary, help me, I pray!
Power, all power, surely is Thine!
Touch me and heal me, Savior divine.
Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Hold o’er my being absolute sway!
Fill with Thy Spirit ’till all shall see
Christ only, always, living in me.
Says Michael A. Guido, "This involves a decision. First you make the decision, then your decision makes you" (Seeds from the Sower, Vol. 25, No. 5). Yes, sometimes we might hesitate to pray something that sounds so bold as "Have Thine own way, Lord," but we do not pray from where we are, we pray from where we are being led toward by the Holy Spirit. We are moving toward Christian wholeness, so, let us pray, not only confessing our brokenness and incompleteness, but in trust that one day we shall perfectly live in union with the Divine Will in every decision, every situation.
Spiritual Exercise
Consider the above hymn a prayer to begin every day. Pray it even if you feel that you lack the full agreement with the prayer. Pray it, anyway. Trust God to use the prayer to lead you more fully into agreement with the Divine Providence operative in your daily life.
*OneLife writings are offered by Brian K. Wilcox, a United Methodist pastor serving in the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church. He writes in the spirit of John Wesley's focus on the priority of inner experience of the Triune God; scriptural holiness; ongoing sanctification; the goal of Christian perfection (or, wholeness). Brian lives a vowed contemplative life with his two dogs, Bandit Ty and St. Francis, in North Florida. OneLife writings are for anyone seeking to live and share love, joy, and peace in the world and in devotion to God as she or he best understands God.
The Peace of Christ to All!
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