What does God want me to do
what does God want me to do the most frequent question I'm asked in one way or another in some
shape or another when people come into the office that most of them come in struggling to discern
what God's will is for their life hands down 90 percent of those who sit down at the table
with the pastor are not looking for my opinion or my conclusion what they want
is to hopefully believe that I might help them understand what God desires of them and what God
wants them to do with a certain situation in their life come in asking what does God want me to do
come in saying that I have a desire in my heart but how do I know if it's God's will or if it's
just what I want to do come in at a crossroad have a critical decision to make it and wondering
which path does God want me to walk on they come in they've been dating somebody for a long time
and they want to know God is this the one or should we look for another come in with this
curiosity concern of trying to discern what God's will is for their life my brothers and sisters I
would suggest you that hands down the greatest struggle all of us face as we walk with the Lord
Jesus Christ no matter how big your bible is no matter how many Sundays you come to church
all of us at some point in our lives struggle with trying to understand what is God's will what does
God want me to do what decision is God backing what role does God want me to take what job
has God put his finger on what relationship has God endorsed what does God really want me to do
discerning the will of God for the decisions of your life is not always easy why because
God doesn't always speak his will in grand and glorious ways that are easy to understand Elijah
one of the greatest prophets of God has prayed to the Lord for God to reveal his will to him and in
chapter 19 of First Kings Elijah says that a wind blew and the wind was so strong that it began
to shake the mountains but God wasn't in that wind and after the wind there was an earthquake
and the earth began to shake and tremble but God wasn't speaking through the earthquake and then
there was a great and grand fire that consumed everything but God wasn't speaking in the fire and
after the wind and after the earthquake and after the fire there was a still small voice
and what Elijah understood is what we understand is that God doesn't always speak
in earth moving shattering signs and symbols that give you clarity into
what God wants that sometimes the will of God is spoken in a still small voice
wouldn't faith be easier if God revealed his will in big ways I made it easier if God just bought a
billboard on your way to work and put up what your instructions were for your life God doesn't even
have a Facebook page won't even post what he wants you to do God doesn't tweet you in the morning
with your divine assignment God has never sent you an email God no longer speaks to a pillar of cloud
by day and a pillar of fire by night wouldn't it be easier if when you prayed for God to reveal his
will he would make it easy to discern in grand and glorious ways but God speaks in still small
voices somebody today you're struggling to know what God wants you to do how do I know
what God wants me to do you probably say read the bible that's a good answer I endorse that I
I second that motion because if you read your bible you will be a better Christian however the
bible does not always reveal to you God's personal prescribed providential plan for your life
the bible tells me some things but it does not always give me the personal decisions I
need to make in my daily living I can't go to the bible open it up find a book with my name on it
where God has written me a letter to tell me everything I must do every day of my life so
again how do I know what God wants me to do part of discerning that will of God I believe we can
glean some insight through the journey of the apostle Paul
watch what the bible says Paul then determines that he wants to go to Asia modern-day Turkey
the bible says that the Holy Spirit did not allow it so then Paul says well let me go to Bithynia
and the bible says the Holy Spirit did not allow it make certain you catch this when Paul wants to
go to Turkey the Holy Spirit says no and when Paul wants to go to Bethania the Holy Spirit says no
make sure you catch us that when their hearts desire is to go this way if that was not where God
wanted them to go the Holy Spirit is what God uses to keep them from going in the wrong direction
God uses the Holy Spirit to be that still small voice that tells you what God wants you to do
that the Holy Spirit allows me to interpret the will of God around me so that when I am
filled with the Holy Spirit I can see and hear and discern what direction God is pointing me and hear
me my brother and my sister God is not trying to play a game with you God's will he does not want
it to remain a mystery God is not trying to keep his will out of your vision God wants you to know
what he wants you to do he wants you to know his will he wants you to be obedient and he gives
you the Holy Spirit to be able to discern it so when you read the bible in your devotional life
and you come away with an understanding of what God wants you to do
Holy Spirit when you come to church confused and somewhere between the singing of the song
and the preaching of the sermon a light shines and you got it now you understand
it made sense in your heart and in your head that wasn't a choir and it wasn't a preacher
Holy Spirit when you sit down with your pastor your counselor your therapist your psychiatrist
and you talk to them and when you're done talking with them you now believe that God has spoken to
you and you know what you're supposed to do don't give it the credit to the PhD on the wall that's
the Holy Spirit when you've been praying for God to direct you and you wake up one day
and you see signs around you that begin to speak God's will over your life your neighbor saw the
same thing and didn't get anything out of it why because that's the Holy Spirit that the role of
the Holy Spirit is to direct you in God's will now now now if that's how God speaks through the Holy
Spirit that means that there are two things you've got to do in order to discern what God wants you
to do in every decision you've got to make number one you've got to bathe your decision in prayer
if you want God to talk to you you better talk to him bathe it in prayer God tell me which way to go
God make sure the motivations in my heart are correct God make your way clear to me God guide
me God speak to my heart God point me in the right direction that if you trust in the Lord
with all your heart and lean not into your own understanding but in all your ways acknowledge
him he will what God will direct your path when you bathe your decision-making in prayer
you want to know why some of us have difficulty discerning God's will you're on sensory overload
you got too much coming at you too much Facebook to sense God
too much Twitter too much reality tv
you wonder why you can't discern the will of God when the first
thing you do when you wake up in the morning is check your phone
to read your emails to see who tweeted you how many new followers you got last night
and we're so overloaded with other things
that we can't discern the will of God so that you can clearly hear the still small voice of God
now wait a minute somebody I know you I know you I just heard it you said hold on reverend
I've been praying God hasn't shown me anything I've been praying sincerely
for God to direct me and God hasn't told me which path to take God hasn't pointed out
what I ought to do God hasn't made it clear you've been praying but you still don't know
okay I want you to see what happens with Paul the bible says the Holy Spirit did not allow Turkey
the Holy Spirit did not permit Bithynia but they got to Macedonia by their own conclusion now
it's interesting that Bethania was blocked by the Holy Spirit Turkey was blocked by the Holy Spirit
but Macedonia were never given any indication that the Holy Spirit directed them to Macedonia
they got to Macedonia by their own conclusion which means this they discern the will of God
because what God didn't want them to do was clearer than what God did don't don't lose me
God's no is always louder than God's yes
that what God does not want you to do God is able to block clearly but where
God wants you to do comes to the conclusion and passion and moving in that direction and
finding out in a real sense they were able to discern the will of God not through God's yes
but through the absence of God's no here's what happens they try to go to Turkey
and the Holy Spirit blocks it in some way they try to go to Bithynia and the Holy
Spirit blocks it in some way they try to go to Macedonia and they conclude that Macedonia must
be the right direction because there was no blockage or interference from the Holy Spirit
and since God did not say no that must be the direction God wanted them to go in
that sometimes we discern the right road because God keeps the door open
hear me there's one passage of scripture I really really really really really want you to memorize
it it's one of the most prophetic promises in all scripture and it's one that we don't hang our hat
on enough it comes to us in Revelation chapter 3 and verse 7 when Jesus says this I can close
a door no man can open and I can open a door no man can close that we serve a God who is able to
shut down the wrong road and open up the right road God can block and prevent you from moving
in the wrong direction and God can swing wide open the door that leads you down the right path
so here's what you do you bathe it in prayer and then you move in the direction that you feel you
ought to go and trust God enough that if that's not what he wants you to do he can close the door
that you'll never be able to open and he'll leave open a door that no one can close no
matter how long it takes you to get there if that's God's will that door will always be open