I hear a lot of people these days talking about the will of God, as in...
"You lost your job? Well, just pray for God to show you His will for a new direction."
Sounds great doesn't it? Just sit tight because God has a specific new direction He's taking you in and you don't want to miss out on it. I've had a hard time responding to this kind of statement but have been unable to really put into words as to why until today. Our church has been going through a series on the Lord's Prayer; this week we are up to "Your will be done..."
The message our lead pastor gave on Sunday (listen here) confirmed something I had been thinking about for quite some time: God may not have a specific will for each and every person on the planet. In fact, I would argue that the will of God is perhaps far more broad than we realize and has far less to do with our personal happiness than we realize too.
I do believe particular people are called to a specific life (can you imagine Billy Graham working in an accounting office?), however, most of us can be "in the will of God" regardless of where we live or what career path we are in.
And what is that will? To be the hands of feet of Jesus wherever I am...proactively love my neighbours, help new Canadians learn english, support an orphanage in Africa, speak out on behalf of the oppressed...the list is endless. Ultimately, I can do God's will no matter where I am. Sure, I'd like to find a job where I am happy, where I can pursue my passions and find fulfillment, but in reality, that has very little to do with the will of God. I can still do the will of God working in a marketing office or on an assembly line, scrubbing floors or marking term papers...or even being unemployed.
So while my job hunt continues, my anxiety at making the right decision to ensure I am in God's will is gone. I'll find the right job soon enough, but in the meantime, I'll just keep on striving to do God's will regardless of where I am.
3 comments:
Hey Brad, great thoughts! I heard from another lady at your church that that was a fantastic sermon. I think I will listen to it! :)
Right on. I am re-reading this one again:
http://is.gd/4rSt
A very balanced approach.
I can lend it to you shortly if you like to take it for a spin.
=t=
Was scanning through your posts and landed on this one. Coming from a missions background, the whole thing of "God's will" and "a calling" has been a prominent theme in my life. I've arrived at the thought that we've been gifted as individuals with certain strengths, plus we've developed certain passions over the years. Together they make up a tool kit that we have at our disposal to live out for God's big-picture purposes.
And I believe that then it's up to us to follow through on our heart's passions and apply what we have to offer to the best of our ability. If what we want aligns with God's overall desires, I believe He will give us the "desires of our heart".
However, the timing is sometimes hard to deal with. For me, anyway. Like a great big combination lock, I don't get all the numbers at once. I try the lock with what I have, but it doesn't work. That's frustrating.
But determining what is in our toolbelt to offer the world is important, and what it is that excites me. I heard someone say that while we often think about what makes us happy/excited/passionate, we should also ask ourselves what makes us angry. Maybe the avenue we're looking for is in solving a problem that exists.
Post a Comment