Nevertheless

My daughter, Kayla, was born with hearing loss. That’s quite a blow to a mom who’s anticipating perfection…oh, you know what I mean, we all want our babies to be whole and healthy. I didn’t have time for a pity party; there were too many tests and doctor’s visits to deal with.

I was a practically a newborn myself in my walk with Jesus, but I knew enough to know that God was a God of miracles. I’d read the stories of Jesus turning water to wine, touching a leper and healing a blind man, so my prayers were for her healing, that God would restore her hearing to normal. One day a friend asked, “what if God’s plan for her is to work with the deaf community?” That one little question caught me off guard, making me question whether I was being selfish to pray for her complete healing, or that by praying that way, I was not allowing God’s plan for her to manifest.

I took my concerns to Pastor Jerry, hoping he’d share some wisdom with me on how to pray for Kayla. Even though it was almost 20 years ago, I still remember what he told me. He said it’s ABSOLUTELY okay to pray for healing, as long as you pray for grace to accept the outcome. Grace to accept the outcome. Wow. Because we can’t know this side of heaven what God’s plans are, the things we pray for may not be a part of that plan, even if they line up with His Word. However, if we can accept the outcome with humility and grace, we reveal to others the power of faith and trust. Jesus gave us the best example when He was praying in the garden before His crucifixion. He earnestly asked the Father for the cup to be taken from Him, in other words, that He would be spared what He knew was coming. Then, He added, “nevertheless, not My will but Thine be done.” Grace to accept the outcome. At any time, Jesus could have stopped the chain of events that later took place, but with grace, He let the will of God play out, knowing that the Father’s plans are always greater than our own.