I think we’ve all thought at one time or another, I just really don’t understand what God’s will is for my life. Or wondered, Where do I fit in God’s plans?
Maybe you’ve wondered if it’s actually possible to discover God’s will—or if you just need to blindly follow after God, hoping His plan will become clear.
Well, when we turn to Ephesians 5:15-17, we get some clarity on this:
“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”
Now, if Paul tells us to understand what the will of the Lord is, obviously His will can be understood. God is not going to command us to get a grasp of something without it being available to us!
It is definitely possible to know God’s will. But… how exactly then do we find out what God’s will is?
First things first, let’s look at the ministry of Jesus. Remember in Mark 3:21 when Jesus’ family—his mother and brothers—attempted to pull Jesus away from His teaching because they thought He was out of His mind?
Jesus is in the middle of sharing some intriguing parables with the crowd when His mother and brothers arrive and ask Him to come outside.
Jesus has a dramatic response to this situation in Mark 3:33-35:
“But He answered them, saying, ‘Who is My mother, or My brothers?’ And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, ‘Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother.’”
As this story shows, the will of God is sitting at His feet to hear His word. That’s what all of those people were doing. They were sitting in a circle around Him, listening to Him teach via parable.
For us, that means to spend prayerful, undistracted time in the Bible. When we do that, we are in God’s will.
When I was a young Christian, I was living with a family for a short period of time, and it profoundly impacted my new faith. One morning I heard something before it was even light out. I noticed that the man was awake, and I was curious, so I snuck behind him and watched!
He went into the kitchen, put on a light, made a pot of coffee, and then sat down at the table with a cup of coffee and his Bible. And he spent half an hour reading the Scriptures.
The next morning before it was light, I heard him again. And he did that every single morning. It deeply influenced my young faith as I watched him spend so much time with the Lord. And now daily Bible reading is precious to me.
When you and I read the Bible, we’re actually performing the will of God. We are smack dab in the middle of it, and that is encouraging to know!
Of course, there are so many other wonderful, life-empowering things God is calling you to. But the important thing is that His will is not hidden. You can actively participate in God’s will, understand it, and live it out.
All you have to do is sit at His feet, listen to His Word, and rest in His presence. He will take it from there!
My prayer for you is that God will illuminate all He has planned for you as you dive into Scripture and seek Him in prayer—so that you can be empowered to live for Jesus with confidence every day.
Because when you embrace God’s will for your life, you can be sure that you will actively help to bring our living Jesus to a dying world.
