Willing to Know God's Will

This past week, I have been studying and writing the last Bible study for StudentLife in my current contract, and my assignment is Romans 11:33-12:2 and the question, "What is God's will for my life?" Million dollar question, right? (For those of you in my small group, rest assured - we will be talking about this in about two weeks.) Have I got it all figured out? Heavens, no! But I'm learning. So here's a snapshot of thoughts on the topic.

God's Revealed Will

Go ahead and get ready to receive this truth.

You won't know it all. You're not meant to. You can't handle it. God's thoughts and ways are way beyond our ability to comprehend (Is. 55:8-9; Rm. 11:33-36). But He does want us to obey Him, and He has revealed in Scripture what He desires for us to know. Much of His will is explicitly stated in His Word. You want to know His will? Here's a short list of things that are part of God's will for your life:

Abide in Christ, the True Vine (Jn. 15:4-5).
Make disciples (Mt. 28:19).
Use the gifts that God has given you to serve others in the church (Rm. 12:6-8).
Live a holy lifestyle (1 Pt. 1:15-16).
Love all people, even those who rub you the wrong way (1 Jn. 4:7).
Be diligent in prayer (Col. 4:2).
Only speak words that edifies those who hear (Eph. 4:29).
Take care of the widows and orphans (Jas. 1:27).

Are you doing these things? You wanted to know God's will, but are you doing what He has revealed in His Word? It is imperative that we be obedient. If you're not obeying what God has revealed, then why in the world are you so concerned about what He hasn't explicitly revealed? Are you basically wanting His stamp of approval on your plans? Do what He's said (Jas. 1:22).

Be obedient. Be consistently studying the Word.

But what about the gray areas, the things that Scripture does not completely answer? Like should I date/marry that guy? Should I major in education or biology? Should I go to UGA or Auburn (duh, UGA - Go dawgs!).

This is where Romans 12:1-2 comes in. "I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."

If you are a Christian, then the Holy Spirit resides in you, teaching you all things and guiding you in the way of truth (Jn. 14:15-31; Jn. 16:5-15). He transforms you by renewing your mind, which is a process that will last your entire life. The Holy Spirit changes you from within in order to reorient your pattern of thinking, for you need to be reprogrammed or realigned because of sin. The more you study, reflect, and obey God's Word, the more His Spirit will work in you to transform you and to make you fit His mold. Knowing His will for your life - knowing what is good, what is pleasing to Him, what meets His standard of perfection - can only be done by someone who knows Him.

A renewed mind enables you to test and to draw conclusions from that test regarding whether or not something aligns with God's Word, God's character, and God's will.

"...God's will cannot be reduced to a set of rules and regulations; the key, however, is the willingness and eager submission of the creature to live out of his dependence on God - to seek to know God's will as the first objective, and his enabling for the still harder task of doing it" (James D. G. Dunn, the Word Biblical Commentary, Romans 9-16).

Why doesn't God just tell me already?!?!?!

FAITH.

God wants to grow you. He wants to develop you and to make you more like Himself. How will you learn to trust Him if you are never in situations that require you to have faith? If I want to tone my arms and abs, then I have to consistently work those muscles. God wants to grow your faith muscle, and He uses the uncertain, ambiguous moments in our lives to do this. Do you trust Him? Do you trust His plan for your life, even if it involves pain or discomfort or inconvenience?

If you know me, then you're probably aware that I'll eventually relate things back to Genesis. Well, here I go. Think of Abraham in Genesis 12. God tells the man to uproot his family and to head to a place that God would show him. Abraham didn't even have a destination. Could you imagine telling your family that you don't know where God is leading you, but you're going to pack up your camel (or car) and just start driving because God will show you where to go as you go. Sounds ludicrous, right? But that's exactly what happened. And you know what? Abraham stepped out in faith and found God to be faithful to His word.

You may feel like you're stepping out on shaky ground. That you're out on a limb. Like you're Indiana Jones in The Last Crusade when you realize that the journey requires you to take a leap of faith. What will you do? Will you pull an Abraham and trust God?

"Faith reminds itself of what the Scripture calls 'the exceeding great and precious promises.' Faith says: 'I cannot believe that He who has brought me so far is going to let me down at this point. It is impossible, it would be inconsistent with the character of God.' So faith, having refused to be controlled by circumstances [or feelings] reminds itself of what it believes and what it knows." -Martin Lloyd Jones

What You Can Know

I'm often tempted to worry when I don't know the plan or can't control it (any other Type A folks out there?), but over the past couple of months as I have wrestled with some tough questions related to this topic, here are some truths that God has compelled me to speak over myself, especially when I start becoming anxious about my unanswered questions or unknown future.

God is good.
God is sovereign, perfectly in control.
God's plan is perfect.
God orchestrates all things for His glory, for my good, and for the benefit of others.
God is always with me.
God is faithful and always keeps His promises.
God is completely trustworthy.
God sees all things and hears all things. Nothing escapes His notice.
God loves me more than anyone else could ever love me.
God thinks that I am valuable, worthwhile, and beautiful. He made me the way that I am, and God doesn't make junk.
God equips me with strength and grace to be faithful.
God is infinitely wise.

Isaiah 26:3-4 has also been my theme for the past three months, and there are many times that I will quote it to myself multiple times a day: "You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD God is an everlasting rock."

Notice that Isaiah 26:3 highlights that a mind focused on God knows the peace of God. Set your mind on God and on things of eternal value (Col. 3:2). Be consumed with the eternal, not the temporal.

If you have questions or want to dialogue some more on the topic, please let me know! I'm still learning, and questions/discussion with others is a great help in the process.