Can God's will be done on earth like it is in heaven?

"...Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."

How often did I pray that prayer as a boy growing up? How often did I mouth those words in church or in parochial school or at home? But did I understand what I was praying, what God's son was saying?

In heaven God's will is accomplished perfectly. In heaven there is no sorrow, tears or pain. In heaven God's presence is manifest and it’s recognized. In heaven there are no missed opportunities. In heaven tears of mourning get turned into tears of joy. In heaven love is expressed in its purest form.

In heaven there are no regrets, no disappointments, no might-have-beens or if-onlys. In heaven God's word is accomplished to its ultimate intent.

That’s what heaven is like.

So, try to imagine what it’s like to be part of that. Try to imagine what it’s like to be in a place where nothing but God's will gets accomplished. Not only because God wants it so, but because the place itself promotes it, due to God's presence, and everyone there being in agreement.

There is no dissention in heaven because everyone and everything has been reconciled. 

There is a push in our country for diversity and inclusion. But yet there is much division and prejudice and hatred borne of insecurity and fear. In heaven there is amazing diversity, in fact, representatives of every nation and tribe on the face of the earth will be there. And it will be glorious. The song of praise emanating from heaven will be so rich and harmonious that it will far surpass anything our imagination could come up with.

All of these things will constitute heaven. All of these things will constitute heaven because of God's presence being there in its fullness. Now, after imagining these things, can you begin to understand what God's Son was talking about when he said, in response to his followers asking him to teach them how to pray to God: "Pray like this...your (God's) kingdom come, your (God's) will be done on earth as it is in heaven."

Remember C.S. Lewis’ description of grass in The Great Divorce? How it was so beautifully deep that the narrator of the story had experienced nothing like it and almost wept seeing and experiecing its fullness. Now try to consider how everything - every object, every being -will be in its perfect state in heaven.

Are you beginning to get the picture? 

Are you beginning to get excited? Are you beginning to understand the significance of God's will being done on earth like God's will is being done in heaven? Some people say that thinking about heaven in this way is a waste of time; that its all pie-in-the-sky. But why would God's son encourage us to pray for it's coming on earth if it wasn't possible? 

We don't have to wait for the ultimate fulfillment of this prayer until our life on this earth is complete. It's happening now and we can be part of it.

This is a prayer without limits. This is a prayer that erases doubt and confusion. This is a prayer that opens up a highway from God's heart to our soul. And to the soul of anyone else who cares to say yes to this magnificent invitation!

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