Yesterday, I finished our lesson feeling frustrated, like God wouldn’t ever speak to me.

Today though, was just what I needed. It was 3 things that really just all kinda hit me in the face, as I sat on my bed reading them in the early hours of this morning.

First, it was a reminder that still—it’s all about relationship. It’s not about pursuing a relationship with God SO THAT He will reveal what He wants for our lives. It’s not about pursuing a relationship with God SO THAT we can determine where He is at work. It’s not about pursuing a relationship with God SO THAT we can have anything other than an intimate love relationship with Him. When I think about that in human terms, when I think about pursuing a relationship with someone for my own gain, which is essentially what that is, it seems so wrong. And how much more so for me to view a relationship with God as a means to an end. I’m praying for God to work on my heart on that one. Blackaby says that “in every sitution, God demands that you depend on Him rather than on a method. The key is not a method but a relationship with God.” Knowing God is not a step in the plan—it is the plan.

Secondly, it gave some practical ways to search out God’s will. If I’m going to sincerely try to find God’s will in something, big or small, there’s a much better way to do it than I’ve been doing. And I think that the more my relationship with the Lord grows, the more naturally this will come (hopefully).
1. I need to seek to get my heart into a position where it has no will about the situation, so that I can be ready to do God’s will, whatever that may be.
2. I don’t leave the result to feelings or impressions. I don’t just say, “well, this feels right to me” or “this is where I think He’s leading me”. I continue to seek His will and seek confirmation, instead of relying on my emotions.
3. I seek the will of the Holy Spirit through confirmation in the Word of God. Blackaby says, “If the Holy Ghost guides us at all, He will do it according to the scriptures and never contrary to them.”
4. Take into account providential circumstances that indicate God’s will, as confirmation of the Holy Spirit and Scripture.
5. Pray for God to reveal His will to me.
6. By praying, studying God’s word and reflecting, I come to a deliberate judgement, using the best of my abilities. If my mind is at peace about it, especially after asking God about it two or three more times, I go with it.

And lastly, as I was reading through ways to really walk with God and know His will for my life, something hit me like a ton of bricks. For all of my complaining about how I don’t have a deep relationship with God and how I don’t know His will, I think the truth is that I’ve never poured my heart into seeking Him or His will for my life. I’m fairly certain that in the list above, the only one I’ve done when seeking God’s will is #5. I’ve prayed (half-heartedly at worst and sincerely at best) and then just kinda gone with my gut feeling. And, as we read today, that’s just not it. That’s not enough. It’s almost like I would pray to cover myself and then just do what I thought was right. And then, I would have the audacity to be frustrated with God for not revealing His will to me.

Yesterday, I was frustrated. Today, I’m feeling thankful for God’s teaching through this study and for the reminder that seeking God’s will is about more than just a little prayer. He gave us His Word and the Holy Spirit to guide and teach us. Today as I was reading, I was very convicted of how I haven’t been listening for the guidance of the Holy Spirit much. And I haven’t been using scripture to guide my life much, even when I have been faithfully reading it.

And even though I know these are pretty elementary concepts, I’m thankful to the Lord for His patience in teaching (and re-teaching) them to me today.