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How do I hear God, and let him guide me in decisions? I want God to be in control of my life, however, I direct my own hands and feet. Decisions are easily made when he has spelled them out in the Bible (although not always easily carried out), but so much of life is left up to us. I'm facing a big life decision. I have prayed, read the Bible, consulted close friends (believers), and of course my wife. No direct answers from any of these sources! At what point can I confidently make a decision?
Sometimes we desire an answer right away but God has different ideas and we have to wait. In my own life, I have received answers within a short time, others, I had to wait longer. Some I have waited for and no answer was forthcoming so I knew that it wasn't the right thing for me. It can be frustrating on our part but we must remember that God knows what is best for us and His timing in perfect where ours is not.
My wife and I are eager to work in music ministry and serve Him and others and we have prayed about it for a long time. We have received encouragment from those around us but it is not our time yet so we continue to work on our gifts and writing until such time when God deems us ready. We must be patient, as difficult as it is to wait. My suggestion is to continue praying about it and be attentive to His presence.
If we are baptized in Christ, do we not have the mind of G-d? And with that annointed mind, isn't it ours to make a decision? This is not about sin and death if we are dead to those issues, but to life and living. There is a broad spectrum of experience we live in outside of sin. We should fill up that time doing G-d's will, not wondering about it. If it is not of G-d, it will not prosper. Setbacks are not always the devil either, they can be bad planning. Pray, set your mind, do your best work, and continue in faith knowing G-d can set up a blockade no one can break down. When you come to that, it's time to stop, until then put your hand to the plow.
Sometimes we desire an answer right away but God has different ideas and we have to wait. In my own life, I have received answers within a short time, others, I had to wait longer. Some I have waited for and no answer was forthcoming so I knew that it wasn't the right thing for me. It can be frustrating on our part but we must remember that God knows what is best for us and His timing in perfect where ours is not.
My wife and I are eager to work in music ministry and serve Him and others and we have prayed about it for a long time. We have received encouragment from those around us but it is not our time yet so we continue to work on our gifts and writing until such time when God deems us ready. We must be patient, as difficult as it is to wait. My suggestion is to continue praying about it and be attentive to His presence.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kin Atoms
If we are baptized in Christ, do we not have the mind of G-d? And with that annointed mind, isn't it ours to make a decision? This is not about sin and death if we are dead to those issues, but to life and living. There is a broad spectrum of experience we live in outside of sin. We should fill up that time doing G-d's will, not wondering about it. If it is not of G-d, it will not prosper. Setbacks are not always the devil either, they can be bad planning. Pray, set your mind, do your best work, and continue in faith knowing G-d can set up a blockade no one can break down. When you come to that, it's time to stop, until then put your hand to the plow.
I think these 2 posts have both given you some pretty good advice. Basically, this is IMO where we ALL live as Christians. I read a book many years ago about guidance by Bob Mumford. He basically stated that when these 3 things are in alignment, we can be confident something is in God's will for us:
1)circumstances (open vs. closed doors etc.)
2) Word of God
3) our own inner peace about it
I think these are good guidelines but even so, there are just times when you still just aren't certain and a decision one way or the other MUST be made. At those times, when you've sought God through prayer, Bible reading, maybe even with Godlly counsel and fasting, I think you just have to make the best decision you can and move on trusting God to guide you. I think He can either block us or redeem it even if we err. The important thing, I think, is that we have really sought His will for our life. If our heart is right, and it isn't against the written Word of God, I think we really can't go very wrong, ya know?
I think that God answers most of our prayers if they are for our benefit or for others benefit..Many times we think He doesn't hear us, but he guarantees us that He "hears" us before we ask.."Be still and know that I am God", is IMO, some of His best advice..Many times we are impatient and throw a 2 year old tantrum, because we don't feel we are being heard or that we are getting the things we ask for..Our prayers are mostly answered in ways that we do not immediately recognize, but are far better than we asked for
How do I hear God, and let him guide me in decisions? I want God to be in control of my life, however, I direct my own hands and feet. Decisions are easily made when he has spelled them out in the Bible (although not always easily carried out), but so much of life is left up to us. I'm facing a big life decision. I have prayed, read the Bible, consulted close friends (believers), and of course my wife. No direct answers from any of these sources! At what point can I confidently make a decision?
Hi, I believe that if you realize that all things are in the "hands" of God and ask that His will be done in your life as the decisions are made then all will work for the good. He causes all things to work together for the good or ideal of those who love Him according to Romans 8:28, to those called according to His purpose. So whatever the decision is He will work it for your good. As someone shared, we may not see how God has worked it out at first but many times I have looked back on things that have happened in my life and realized that God was doing something wonderful even when I messed up or it looked like I had made the wrong decision. Have a blessed day.
Prayer and communicating with God is something that I am most interested in. I think about the times in my life when everything seemed to be falling apart and I felt like I heard nothing from God. I believe that God wants obedience ( though I`m far from it ). The problems in my life stem from disobedience. We have to seek God everyday and want his will for our lives. He has to put that desire in our hearts. I read somewhere that God always answers prayer if you pray thy will be done. A person once said when they feel compelled to pray they know God is getting ready to move in their life. Because he is the one that moves us to pray and we have to trust that his will is what is best for us. The hard part is having faith in that when we cannot see through the current pain and things don`t work out as planned. I know I struggle with that along with trying to be obediant. Though I often fail, I always have faith that God is working things out for my best and I just lean on his grace and mercy.
Thanks so much for the replies. The decision I and my family face is one that I don't want to look back on with any regret or doubt. After thinking over how I have prayed about this, I can say that my prayers have been focused on asking him to 1) remove this desire (and the opportunity) if it is not from him, 2) provide the strength and courage to see it through if it is his will, and 3) give us peace in the decision once made.
I think now I know the right choice, and more imporantly, I know I truly sought God's decision for my family. If you folks have anything to add or point out, please let me know. For now, I will press forward, as confidently as possible, and continue to pray for more peace and all the more that he will close the door if this is not his will. Thank you for your help!
Well, here I am, roughly 11 years later. I wanted to take a moment, with the benefit of hindsight, to let anyone reading this know the impact/results of this old decision, and to again thank everyone for their replies. First, I want to say that I believe without a doubt that the path we took was in fact God's purpose for our lives. Looking back, I can see how this decision shaped the lives of both myself and my family for many years to come. There were difficult challenges along the way, a lot of hard work--but it definitely paid off. It turns out, God knew my heart better than I did, and rewarded me and my family in a way that will benefit us, literally, for the rest of my life. My respect and faith have deepened, and I thank him almost daily! As I reflect back on this, and how we started, I'm a little embarrassed to say my nose is stinging and my eyes are welling up... I feel deeply moved, and grateful to God, and to his followers for guiding me through a pivotal point in my life. I find myself now constantly praying a simple prayer (not the serenity prayer, but one I developed through this experience): "God, give me the wisdom to know right from wrong, the courage to choose right, and the strength to see it through."
Every journey begins with a first-step, and every step is a new journey.
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