There is something deeply encouraging about a prayer like this, because it shows you understand the power and necessity of complete surrender. The very fact that you are asking for this landlord to hear God's voice means that voice is still speaking, still calling out to him. And as long as that call is going forth, there is hope. The tragedy is that a person can harden themselves to that voice for so long that they no longer hear it. So we pray with urgency, asking the Father to soften this man’s heart before that day comes.
So often we are terrified at the thought of fully yielding our will to God. We almost brace for disaster, as if His plan for us is to make us miserable. But nothing could be further from the truth. The wisest thing anyone can do is place their life entirely in His hands. God is not out to ruin us; He wants to crown us with blessing. The problem is that we wrestle with Him, fighting to keep control of areas we were never meant to govern. I have seen that in my own life, and I know the truth of what Scripture teaches: sometimes God allows a limp to bring about a blessing He could not give to a proud, self-sufficient heart. We can resist until He must cripple us to crown us. Let us pray this man does not wait for that kind of painful correction.
The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it. This landlord’s property, his authority, his very breath are all held by God. Real surrender is not just a vague religious idea; it is the practical acknowledgment that everything belongs to Him and must be used according to His voice. It means hearkening to His commandments, not with a complaining spirit but with joyful trust. God has set before us the way of life and the way of death. To hear His voice and disobey is to choose the path that leads to loss. When He speaks through His Word, through circumstances, through the quiet conviction of the Spirit, we must not be like those who say, “No, that is not true. God did not say that,” because they hoped He would say something else. True submission means going where He leads, even when it was not our own desire.
We know that none of us can improve on the will of God. His plan for this owner is good, meant to conform him into the image of Christ. But that often means chipping off rough edges, and we do not always enjoy the process. Yet if we resist the work, we are the losers. God does not need us to accomplish His purposes, but He chooses to bless us when we yield. This man’s salvation, his eternal life, is a gift received by faith, not by works, so there is no room for boasting. But the proof of that faith is a life that responds to God’s love with obedient surrender.
So we lift up a united prayer that this owner will stop scheming his own way out of the predicaments he has already handed over to God. May he hear the voice of the Shepherd calling, and may he answer with wholehearted submission. No more bargaining, no more half-hearted promises to obey as long as God agrees with his terms. May he instead say with his whole will, “Here I am, Lord, Your servant.” God will attend to that kind of prayer. He will cause His face to shine upon the one who turns to Him. Let us make the voice of His praise heard, even now, trusting that He who holds our soul in life will bring this landlord to the place of full surrender, for the glory of His name.