Knowing God’s Will For My Life                                                                                                Page 1

True or False – God only gives me one opportunity to serve Him in ministry.

          False – God gives us multiple opportunities to serve Him.

Moses – Ex. 3:7-4:17
Ruth – Ruth 3:9-4:6
Samuel – 1 Sam. 3:1-9
Esther – 4:4-17
Jonah 1:1-16

True or False – God sometimes asks us to do something contradictory to His word.

          False – God will never ask you to do something contradictory to his Word.

     Amy Grant & Vince Gill

     Lying to someone to get them to do something in the church.

The Specific Will of God

Do we agree that God has a specific will for each of our individual lives?

Eph.1:11
Ps.48:14
Prov.3
Isa.58:11
John 4:34
John 5:30, 6:38
Acts 13
1 Cor. 1:1
James 4:15

In order to know the will of God for our lives we must first seek instruction from the scripture.

How? Is your questions specifically addressed in scripture?
           For ex. “Should I go to church?” Heb.10:23-25

That’s fine for direct questions with direct answers, but what about questions without specific answers?

Ask yourself the following:

1. Why do I want what I want?
2. What is the benefit to the Lord?
3. What is the benefit to myself?

If we are going to use Biblical decision making, we must be willing to use the rational mind that God has given us while examining and applying the Biblical Principles of scripture.

Knowing God’s Will For My Life                                                                                               Page 2

Be very careful when making decisions based on the following:

Decisions based on inner peace. How many of you have inner peace about sharing your faith? If I base my decision to share my faith with an unbeliever based on inner peace, you can be sure that I won’t be sharing my faith.

Decisions based on open doors. Sometimes open doors lead to empty elevator shafts.

Decisions based on feelings. How many of you wake up on Sunday mornings and don’t feel like coming to Sunday school or church?

  The Godly Litmus Test

1. Does it pass the prayer test? – Have you prayed in depth about it?
              Matt.7:7-8, James 4:2
2. Does it pass the Bible test? – Has God already spoken about this somewhere in His word?
              Psalms 119:33,35, 2 Tim.3:16-17
3. Does it pass the glory test? – Will this bring glory or shame to God, my church, my family or myself?            Matt.5:14-16
4. Does it pass the relationship test? – What effect will this have on my relationship with God, my family and/or my church?
             Eph.5:21,33, Eph.6:1,4, 1Thes.4:11-12
5. Does it pass the stewardship test? – Can I do this and still be a good steward of my money, my talents or my time?
              1 Cor.4:1-2, 1 Peter 4:10
6. Does it pass the honesty test? – Am I truly being honest with myself about my findings?

What if both options pass the litmus test? Then make the decision based on what you want to do. Remember Psalm 37:4 “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.”

Remember God is concerned with what we do, why we do it (our intent) and how we do it.

Knowing God’s Will For My Life                                                                                                Page 3

Planning Ahead

Is it wrong to plan ahead? James 4:13-16

What did Jesus say? Luke 14:25-33

What about circumstances? Aren’t they a sign from God?

Circumstances, while controlled by God, should not be used as a leading from God, because they can be interpreted to mean anything. We must weigh the circumstances by reason and rational thought. An event cannot communicate a message apart from divine revelation.

2 Cor. 2:12-13 – Paul walks away from an “open door” because he has a great concern for Titus.

Col. 4:3 – Paul is not praying for guidance, he’s praying for opportunity.

But what about the “fleece”?

Judges 6:36-40:

1. It wasn’t circumstantial, it was supernatural.
2. Gideon wasn’t seeking guidance, but confirmation.
3. It was an event for Gideon alone. (Are there other events in the Bible that were specific to an individual? Yes. Peter walking on water.
4. Notice Gideon needed two events for confirmation.

Knowing God’s Will For My Life                                                                                                Page 4

What Do I Have to Do to Prepare Myself for God’s Will?

1. Be in harmony with God’s word and His law.
        Psalm 40:81
        Isa. 8:20
        Psalm 119:105
2. Be willing to do God’s will.
        John 6:38
        John 7:17
        James 4:13-15
        Jeremiah 29:11
        Proverbs 16:25
3. Be in fervent faithful prayer for guidance.
        James 5:16
        1 John 5:14
4. Do what lies nearest you first.
        John 16:12
        Proverbs 3:6
        Luke 16:10
        Jeremiah 12:5
5. Seek Christian Counsel.
        Proverbs 11:14
        Psalm 1:1-2
        Jeremiah 17:5-10
6. Listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit.
        Isa. 30:20-21
        1 Kings 19:11-12
7. Be willing to wait patiently on the Lord.
        Psalms 37:4-7
        Isa. 49:15-16

Does every decision we make require lots of dedicated thought and prayer?

Proverbs 2

When it’s time to make the decision, it’s time to make the decision.

Joshua 1:5-6
Joshua 14:9-12

Put your trust in the Lord.

2 Cor. 2:12
Isa. 45:1-3