In His Will

Can you imagine what that would feel like? Can you imagine what that would be like?

I'm not sure I've ever been there, but I think I have. I don't mean that I was perfectly in God will, but there have been times when I felt like I was doing exactly what I was supposed to be doing.

Does this sound scary? I think it should. Everyone knows stories of someone who was so convinced that they were doing God's will that they either did something really stupid or were absolutely unwilling to listen to any counsel that contradicted what they believed. How does one prevent this from happening?

I don't know. But, I do have some ideas. Shock!

For me, my most recent, real life example would be raising support to go on staff with AIM. There were quite a few people who didn't think this was a good idea (there were also a fair number of people who supported our decision to go with AIM). I have a family to support, bills to pay, that kind of thing. Most of the people who didn't support the idea were very close to us, making it all the harder to accept. How does one stand against an unexpected onslaught of well thought-out criticism that is contrary to what one believes should be done? Did God really tell me what he wanted me to do? Did he just open a door of opportunity to see if I would take it? Or, was what I thought I should do actually contrary to God's will?

The Test - taken from AIM literature, but adaptable to just about anything

1. Does it exalt Christ? (John 16:14)
2. Is it scriptural? (Proverbs 30:5-6)
3. Do other Christians confirm it? (Proverbs 15:22)
4. Does it produce good fruit? (John 15: 1-16)
5. Does God bring it to pass? (Isaiah 55: 10-11)

The answers, by the numbers:

1. Yes. By foregoing the things that the world has to offer in terms of status, advancement, and security, I was/am following God's desires - Matthew 6:33, Luke 9:23
2. Yes. See verses in previous answer
3. Yes. Many of my friends confirmed that this was a good idea. Does this make it right? No, but it sure helps.
4. Yes. I've been able to spend more of my time in ministry - going on mission trips, going to prisons, talking at church. I believe that God has used these opportunities to bring people to him. I've got stories if you want to hear them...leave a comment.
5. Yes. Ten months after Carla and I decided to go full-time with AIM, we had raised over 100% of our support-raising goal.
   

So, with this test, I can say that God wanted us to go with AIM. Does this mean I'm right? No, of course not. But it does give me a level of confidence that I would not otherwise have.

Ok, back the original questions: Can you imagine what that would feel like? Can you imagine what that would be like? Am I there now? I don't know. I sure don't feel like I am - see the previous post. I think that we/I get stuck in the past. Sort of a 'if I did it this way before, it must be the only way' kind of thing. It doesn't appear to work this way with God. Not that one always has to think of new ways to talk to God and/or get his approval - nothing could be farther from the truth. It's more that one cannot rest on one's laurels. One needs to keep growing.

This is what I think happened to me; I have stopped trying to grow in my relationship with God. I just expected that what I had done in the past would be all I needed to do. To keep the record straight, God doesn't operate by performance-based acceptance (PBA). He loves us the same, no matter what and is always willing to forgive and restore us (I John 1:9, Ephesians 3: 17-19, Isaiah 38:17, Isaiah 43:25, Isaiah 55:6-7 (while I'm thinking about it, I just discovered Isaiah 58:6-11...very interesting), Joel 2:32) Ok, having said all that, I think that one needs to continue to learn and grow as a believer. It's like climbing a hill and stopping when you're at a place that you love and then never starting to climb again...