Frequently Asked, and Other Questions

God's will for us?

Question: "How can I know the will of God?   I understand that the Bible is the entire known will of God, however, how can I know when to act and when to wait?  As I am living my Christian walk I find it frustrating because often times I don't seem to make right personal decisions.   I think "Ok God wants me to do this" when I take the action I find out it is wrong. Or I have an intense feeling like God is calling me to do something, however, I can't seem to take action on it.   Why??   I know that this may seem strange but please help!  Thanks!"


Response:
"Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning, for in You do I trust;  Cause me to know the way in which I  should walk, for I lift up my soul to You........Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God; Your spirit is good.  Lead me into the land of  uprightness."  (Psa. 143:8,10).

How can you know God's will for you?  Ask Him.  And then be willing to listen to Him.
Notice in the scripture above David is asking for God's help, but when he asks, he reminds God that his (David's)  life belongs to God.  David asks for God to teach him His will and then reminds God that He is David's God.  David is telling God that there is no one or nothing that he (David) puts ahead of God. (Reference the first three commandments - Ex 20).
 
David also tells God that His spirit is good.  To have God's spirit in us is wonderful, but in order to utilize that spirit we have to make sure that we get our "will" out of the way.
It isn't that God won't take what we want into consideration, but sometimes what we want might not be the best thing for us.

"Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?'  or 'What shall we wear?'  For after all these things the Gentiles (those without God's spirit) seek.  For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  But seek first  the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow  will worry about its own things....".  (Mat. 6:31-34).

"Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell,  and make a profit"; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life?  It is even a vapor that appears for a  little time and then vanishes away.  Instead you ought to say,  "If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that."" (Jas. 4:13-15).

If we tell God that we want to live our lives according to whatever He wants for us, and  if we put God first, above family, job, or anything else that is important to us, then He will be willing to listen to us.  But we have to be willing to change.

You mentioned that you have an "intense feeling" that God is calling you to do something, but you are hesitating to act.  Could it be that He is trying to get your attention? Is there something in your life that is in the way of your willingness to listen to God or your willingness to change for God?

In Luke 18 there is the account of the rich young ruler that came to Christ and ask what he needed to do in order  to inherit eternal life. He told Christ that he had kept God's law and had lived a good life from the beginning.  From all outward  appearences it looked as though the young ruler was a wonderful example of how to live one's life.
Christ told the young ruler that he lacked one thing, that he had made something in his life more important than God, his wealth.  Christ told him if he was willing to give up what was so important to him then he could have a place in God's kingdom. Verse 23 shows us that the young ruler wasn't willing to put God and Christ first.

What  is sad about this account is that if the young man had been willing to put God and Christ first, then God  'might' not have actually required that he lose everything.
Abraham is a good example of this.  God told Abraham to kill his only son, and Abraham was willing to give up what  he loved the most because that is what God asked of him. As I'm sure you know, God let things get down to the last second before He was sure that Abraham trusted God to do what was best for him.

We have to prove to God that He can trust us with His love.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;  In all your ways acknowledge Him,  and he shall direct your paths."  (Pro. 3:5-6)

"Then Peter said, "See, we have left all and followed You."  So He (Christ) said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you,  there is not one who has left house or parents or brothers, or wife or children for the sake of the kingdom of God, who shall not receive many  times more in this present time, and in the age to come everlasting life."  (Luke 18:28-30).

Again, God wants to know that we love Him above all else and that He can trust us.

Your question isn't strange at all.  Just think how peaceful the world would be if everyone was concerned about  God's will in their lives. How wonderful it would be if everyone put aside the greed and selfishness and put God first in their lives!

Change isn't always easy, especially when we have to examine our own lives and find that we have much to change  and to learn. But God is patient and as long as we honestly show Him that we want a life in which we will always put Him, and His will first, then He will continue to be patient with us as we learn and grow to be more like Him.

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