How do I know God’s will?

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

How do I know God’s will? I’ve never documented it, but that is the question that I’m most asked about as a pastor. Should I take the promotion? Which college should I go to? Is he/she the one? I had a person tell me one time they thought that God was toying with them, making His will difficult to find. Friends, God is not like that at all. He hasn’t buried or hidden His will to make you search for it. Heaven forbid. He delights in your knowledge of His will. In fact, I think God wants you to be filled with it. Listen to Paul’s prayer for the Colossian Christ followers:

“For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding” [1:9].

Here are a few ideas that may help you.

God’s will is not a feeling. You may be expecting warm fuzzies to accompany God’s will. Don’t wait for a feeling when you’re trying to figure out God’s plan for your life. Feelings are unreliable and may guide you down the wrong path. 

God’s will is not a formula. There is no step-by-step guide in knowing God’s will. It’s not like following a recipe; no room for mistakes there. Think about it. If there were 100 steps in knowing God’s will, what happens if you leave out number 53?

God’s will is better understood in your relationship with Him. You will not find a technique for knowing God’s will in the Bible. You will, however, find hundreds of verses about having a dynamic relationship with Him. The better you know Him, the less confusion there is about His will. 

Develop your relationship with God. Everything else is secondary.

Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way. Colossians 3:17 - The MESSAGE Paraphrase