What Is God’s Will For My Life??

Christ Following

long_roadWhat is God’s will for my life?  It’s a question I (and most people I know) ask often.

To be honest with you, I really thought I would be well beyond that question by the time I reached the age I am now.  Heck I’m halfway through my life and I still wonder what’s around the corner, if I’m doing the right thing, or if there’s another chapter in my life I should be preparing for.  A while back, I blogged about the subject of finding God’s will.  I just can’t seem t leave the matter alone.

However, I HAVE learned a couple things that have helped me quite a bit and maybe they’ll help you.  They might even surprise you.  Are you ready to find out what you’re supposed to do with your life?  Check it out…

Finding a vision for your life requires finding a vision for who you are.  Truth is, it’s hard to know what to do if you don’t know who you are or who you want to be.  Try writing a personal mission statement.  It makes a great course reference when distractions come.  What character traits do you value?  How do you want to be remembered?  At the end of your life you will be remembered for the kind of person you were, more than for the things you accomplished.

Romans 12:2 says to “let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you…”

The key to developing a vision for who you want to be is to let God.  Let God define success for you.  Let God choose your priorities, your values, and your preferences.  Then you will learn His will for you!

The next part of finding a vision for your life is this: A vision for our lives requires an ear for God’s heart.  Think about Isaiah’s calling for a minute (Isaiah 6).  Isaiah didn’t receive a direct word from The Lord.  God’s will wasn’t sent to Isaiah in a letter delivered by an angel.  Isaiah was simply in God’s presence and he heard God asking, “Who will go?”  Isaiah heard the need, put up his hand, and said, “I’ll do it!”

I want you to notice something here.  Isaiah saw a need and decided to meet it.  He didn’t take a test to see if he had the correct “gift mix” to respond to the calling.  He didn’t examine the need to make sure it aligned with his passions.  He just said yes, and history was written because of his willingness.

It’s a tragedy that so many lives go untouched, and so many needs go unmet because believers won’t step up to the plate if they don’t feel a warm tingly feeling inside when a need is presented.  If we treated our spouses the way we treated God, we’d all be divorced.  I can only imagine what my wife would say if I said, “I love you honey, but I won’t help you with the dishes because my heart’s not in it and I wouldn’t be doing you any favors by washing them half-heartedly.”  I would soon find myself sleeping on my mom’s couch, eating a steady diet of Chinese take away and Funions.

I recently read an article about career placement and fulfillment entitled, “Passion is Overrated”.  The researcher found that those who spent their lives “following their passions” usually ended up unemployed and/or unhappy.  Most people don’t even know what they’re really passionate about, so how can they follow their passion?

On the other hand, many people discover they are passionate after they do something!  Think about the times you volunteered for something after someone talked you into it, and you ended up loving it!  I have a friend who took a mission trip to Africa and the trip changed his life.  He ended up starting a humanitarian organization  because of the effect the trip had on him.  He did not have a passion for helping African orphans until AFTER he stepped out!

So let me wrap this up by reminding you to be like Isaiah by spending time in God’s presence, determine who you want to be, and answer the call when a need is presented.  You may be surprised to discover that finding what you’re supposed to do with your life isn’t that hard at all.

Getting God’s Will Right

Christ Following, ministry

“I just want to know God’s will.”  “I just need some clarity.”  “I want to make sure I’m not missing God’s plan for me.”

Ever find yourself saying these things?  I know I have, many times.  Heck, I’m the king of “I just want to be in God’s will.”  In fact I’ve spent entire seasons of my life (sometimes lasting a year) trying to determine God’s will for me.

It can be a really unpleasant place to be, this position of in-between, uncertainty, and longing to know what to do next.  After all, we just want to make God happy right?

Although I can’t sit here and tell you exactly how God wants you to spend your life, I can tell you a few things that I’ve learned that will help you discover His plan without losing your mind in the process.

Learn to trust.  A cry for “clarity” is often an indication that we really don’t trust Him.  We want to see more clearly, but that’s because we don’t have faith that our lives are really in His hands.  Learn to accept uncertainty with grace and believe that He will not abandoned you to fumble around in the dark.

Do something. Sometimes we put the brakes on serving or committing to anything for fear that we won’t be available once we figure out what God’s will is.  Stop being so selfish!  There are bigger needs out there than the warm fuzzies you’re seeking.  Don’t you believe that God is big enough to move you on  when He’s ready to reveal His plan?  1st Peter 4:10 tells us to use our gifts to serve others.  To not be serving is to be out of God’s will, so serve.

Pray. To say that you’re “seeking God’s will” but to not be praying is simply lying about what you’re doing.  You’re just worrying about your future.  Seriously, there’s no single act that will bring you closer to discovering God’s will than praying.  In fact, God’s will is that you pray!  (1st Thessalonians 5:18)

Cultivate intimacy with the Father. In times when God is not offering you a plan or a map, He is offering you Himself.  Don’t mistake his silence for indifference.  It’s a call for intimacy and, in time, you’ll learn to cherish that quiet intimacy more than anything else.

God’s will is a call to become. At the end of the day, Father God is far more interested in who you are becoming than what you are doing.  Focus on becoming all that He created you to be and the doing will come naturally.  In fact, you may even find yourself stepping into His plan without even realizing it!

One last thing: God is not cruel.  He is not playing “find the plan” and deliberately making it hard on you.  He’s not high fiving the angels saying, “look at that idiot trying to find my will.”  His will is not a needle in a haystack that you have to find or God will be unhappy with you. He loves you and wants you to experience “life abundantly”.  He may even have several options for you to choose from.  He probably even wants you to have a wonderful time exploring them!