Discovering the Will of God

Today I spent some time reviewing a DVD and study guide by Andy Stanley called Discovering the Will of God. I just love the way Andy Stanley writes and teaches. He's so down to earth, wise, and funny. There are 8 sessions of 20-30 minutes each and group discussion questions afterwards.

The first session was on decisions. How do we know what God's will is when we have a decision to make? The more familiar we become with the providential will of God (the way God works, the things he's going to do anyway, the way he's already working in the world), and the more surrendered we become to the moral will of God (the thou shalts and thou shalt nots), the easier it will be to determine the personal will of God for your life.

The second session was on one of the ways God speaks to us . . . through the wise counsel of others. Andy talked of the importance of carefully choosing who you ask for advice. Choose older, wise people who are already where you want to be. He gave the example of Rehoboam who was about to be king (1 Kings chapter 12). The people who were about to make him king asked if he would go a little easier on them than his father, the previous king. He sought the wise counsel of the elders who had advised his father. They told him yes, give them a break. Then he sought the counsel of his friends who said, no, be harder on the subjects. He sided with his friends over the elders. As a result, Israel rebelled against him.

Another part of this session was that God does not give us information for consideration, but for participation. God's will is not given to us to keep in our bag of options until we decide which option sounds best to us. His will is ALWAYS best for us because he loves us that much. We also find that in the process of discovering God's will, we discover God.

I think of the times I've sought God's will over mine and the outcome was always better than anything I could have orchestrated. We should all strive to get our hearts to the place where we move over and let God do what He wants.

Stick this on your mirror or dashboard: Can you trust God with the consequences of your obedience?