The Challenge 4 August, 2004

Having a better week personally. In the Word every day, met for our teen accountability group and went out to breakfast and had a great lunch with "Dad" last week. Work still stinks and is kind of "up in the air" as far as what's going on with my program... Deb & I had a good time last Friday- went to see the Producers... not as good as Broadway but still good! Real vacation is coming up in a couple of weeks - looking forward to that.

What is God's "will" for my Life?

Man, it is so darn hard to know the will of God in my life. Do you have the same feeling sometimes? Don't we all? I mean these situations happen all the time in our lives where we have to make choices and we just want God to tell us beyond a shadow of any doubt exactly what we are to do in all those situations. We want Him to make the fleece wet one day and dry the next (ref: Judges 6). What college should I go to, who am I going to marry, what job should I take, should we move here or there, and tons of other questions. We want Him to tell us the answer and we want it clearly. Don't you?

I often tell people I have a thick head and that I need God to smack me upside my head with a 2x4 board so that I get the idea. Sometimes circumstances work out that there is no other choice and you just know that God is opening a door for you to walk through. Sometimes we actually get that 2x4 board upside the head when 50 people come tell you that you should do this or that or the other thing and confirm what you know to be the right answer in your heart. This kind of thing happens a lot. But honestly, I know that I wake up many days and wonder what the will of God is for my life on that day. And I know that there are situations in my life where I know I'm just going to have to wait on an answer for a long time because He's not really telling me what's going on here. Do you find that the case with you as well? I ask questions like, "why did God bring me to this point and then let it all fall apart?" I'll give you a personal example I'm living through right now...

Seven years ago I came up with an idea for a program here in my office to integrate all the parts/pieces that infantry guys use. This program would work to reduce the weight of the Infantryman in combat and make the stuff he uses work together better. The way we do it now is very ad hoc and piecemeal to say the least. Anyway, my boss at the time loved the idea and approved us working on it right away. Over the last 7 years it has been a struggle to get this program going. I've worked with it either directly or indirectly for all those years. The program needed a guy in charge and it needed to be a priority for the command and the Marine Corps. During this same 7 years, I was looking to advance in my job to a higher level an was getting turned down over and over again... I'd apply for jobs and be told that I was not qualified or get beat out by someone else and just felt like I was going nowhere. Then suddenly last year, the program I created gets raised to a higher level and they put me in charge of it and then they give me a promotion and tell me to run with it. Wow, it was like God was teaching me patience all those years because He knew that He had not just a promotion in mind but a promotion to my "dream job" the one I've been passionate about all these years. Awesome, right? Well a few weeks ago I learned that the program I'm running has been de-funded! All money has been taken away in 2005, 2006 and 2007 on out. Previous to a couple of weeks ago I was funded through 2010 with no chance of getting it eliminated... now it's all gone. My job? Well they'll have to find something else for me to do if my program remains unfunded but it's not my dream job anymore. So why does this happen? Was I not in the will of God? Is it God's will for this to happen? Why did God bring me this far and teach me these lessons to let me fall like this?

Don't these things happen to you as well? Don't you find yourself in situations where you just can't and don't know what God's will is for your life or your situation? Well I do. A few weeks ago I was at a camp with some of the teens and we heard a sermon on God's Will that really shed some light on this subject. And without stealing all his material I think it is worth passing on to you. The Preacher was Clayton King and his sermon really boiled it down to the bottom line. But like Clayton did during his sermon I have to say that I'm not going to tell you what job to take, who to marry, what school to go to, or tell you how God is going to specifically speak to you on those issues. I am however, going to tell you that you can in fact know and do God's will in your life. Clayton also gave two quotes from folks that are pertinent to this discussion:

"To know God's will is the greatest knowledge; to do God's will is the greatest achievement." George W. Truett.

"I find that doing the will of God leaves me no time for disputing about His plans." George MacDonald

So, how can you know the will of God? The two words "will" and "God" appear over 300 times in God's word. The specific phrase "Will of God" appears 22 times exactly in the NKJV version of the Bible... but probably the most direct verses are in the book of Thessalonians (underlining is mine):

"For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God;" 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5

"Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the faint hearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all. See that no one renders evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." 1 Thessalonians 5:14-18

So, the apostle Paul under the inspiration of God is basically telling us that we already know God's will for us. He specifically tells us a few things in these couple of verses. Abstain from sexual immorality, control yourselves, don't lust, pray, give thanks and pursue what is good. The Bible is replete with God's will for each of us. He tells us his will for how to live, how to treat our neighbors, how to love, how to pray, he clarifies His will for us over and over again (see Matthew 5). He, very specifically, gives us His will. It is spelled out word for word in HIS WORD! No he does not tell us whom to marry. He does tell us how to conduct relationships. He does not tell us what job to take but He does tell us how we should work - as if for the Lord! He does not tell us if we should buy that new car but He does tell us how to manage our money and debt. Are you getting the picture here?

Clayton asked us in the room the other week if we thought we were in God's will. I had to say no. Not because of which job I was in, not because of how I spent my money last week, not even because of some big program that I'm losing or whatever... but because I'm not adhering to the will of God as described in His word. I'm not even working on some of those areas as I should! That is why George MacDonald says above that that he has no time to worry about God's plans if he spends his time doing God's will. Maybe we should spend more time worrying about and doing the expressed will of God to us and less time worrying about what job to take or what school to go to, what boyfriend to have, what toy I'm going to buy next, or why God won't stop the rain so I can ride my motorcycle! Maybe if we did those things we'd be more able to know the answers to questions about other things going on in and around our lives?

Now there's an interesting thought. If we spend our time doing the expressed will of God from His Word and we start growing and getting better at obeying His will, doing the things that are His will...maybe these harder questions get easier to answer. Do you think that might be true? Maybe the parable of the ten minas or ten talents refers to this principle as well. If you can be faithful to do the will of God as He has already presented it to you He will then give you more of His will to be trusted with later. If you can't do His will as it has been expressed to you in His word then why would he come down and tell you more of His will in your life? If you can't handle the small stuff, how can you handle the larger stuff?

"The first one came and said, 'Sir, your mina has earned ten more.' " 'Well done, my good servant!' his master replied. 'Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.'" Luke 19:16-17

Also, remember Abram before he was Abraham got told to do something but was not given the whole plan. He was told to go to the land that God "would" show him and by faith he did so.

"The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you." Genesis 12:1

"By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going." Hebrews 11:8

Do you want to know the will of God for your life? Open your Bible and read! It's right there. You want to know what His will is for your life? Your marriage? Your school? Your kids? Whatever? Do you? Well then I think what Clayton was trying to tell me (and some of my friends) is that God is telling us in very plain English... I'VE ALREADY TOLD YOU WHAT MY WILL IS! He's also saying to each of us... start abiding by my will and the other stuff will be much easier for you because you'll be living in my will!

Are you in God's will? Why not?

Until next week time ~ Dave
To make comments, to suggest topics you'd like me to tackle, to get past devotionals, or to be added to this weekly "devotional email" please write to: Dave Hansen at philip419@earthlink.net