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March 13 - March 13, 2020
We are seeing a generation of young people grow up (sort of) who tinker with doctrines, tinker with churches, tinker with girlfriends and boyfriends, tinker with college majors, tinker living in and out of their parents’ basement, and tinker with spiritual practices no matter how irreconcilable or divergent.
maybe we have difficulty discovering God’s wonderful plan for our lives because, if the truth be told, He doesn’t really intend to tell us what it is. And maybe we’re wrong to expect Him to.
If the will of decree is how things are, the will of desire is how things ought to be.
God has secret things known only to Him (His inscrutable purposes and sovereign will), but He also has revealed things that we are meant to know and obey (His commands and His Word).
while we are free to ask God for wisdom, He does not burden us with the task of divining His will of direction for our lives ahead of time.
The better way is the biblical way: Seek first the kingdom of God, and then trust that He will take care of our needs, even before we know what they are and where we’re going.
if you remember that God promised we would be pilgrims and this world may feel more like a desert or even a prison, you might find your life surprisingly happy.
I’m convinced that previous generations did not struggle like we do trying to discover God’s will because they didn’t have as many choices.
We think choice makes us happy, but there comes a point (and most of us are well past it) where we would actually be better off with fewer choices.
With so many choices, it’s no surprise that we are always thinking about the greener grass on the other side of the fence. We are always pondering what could be better or what might be nicer about something or someone new.
Obsessing over the future is not how God wants us to live, because showing us the future is not God’s way. His way is to speak to us in the Scriptures and transform us by the renewing of our minds. His way is not a crystal ball. His way is wisdom.
Our fascination with the will of God often betrays our lack of trust in God’s promises and provision.
If you aren’t interested in dating or courtship or marriage or whatever, just say “No thanks” or “Not now,” but please don’t make God the bad guy in your relational messes.
Worry and anxiety reflect our hearts’ distrust in the goodness and sovereignty of God. Worry is a spiritual issue and must be fought with faith.
Walking in God’s will means seeking first God’s kingdom and His righteousness.
Simply put, God’s will is your growth in Christlikeness. God promises to work all things together for our good that we might be conformed to the image of His Son (Romans 8:28–29).
God’s will is that you and I get happy and holy in Jesus.
the will of God for your life is pretty straightforward: Be holy like Jesus, by the power of the Spirit, for the glory of God.
The most important decision we face is the daily decision to live for Christ and die to self.
God can speak to people in many ways, the writer explains, but His full and complete revelation is now spoken by His Son, Jesus Christ.
God can use extraordinary means, but they are, by definition, out of the ordinary and not to be expected.
If God opens the door for you to do something you know is good or necessary, be thankful for the opportunity. But other than that, don’t assume that the relative ease or difficulty of a new situation is God’s way of telling you to do one thing or the other.
The whole fleece approach to life is dangerously close to violating Jesus’ admonition, “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test” (Matthew 4:7).
Sadly, some Christians put greater stock in the Word of God when it is randomly selected than when it is read chapter by chapter, day after day.
We have more information than ever before, and yet our wisdom has not kept pace with our knowledge.
“What is wisdom?” Wisdom is understanding the fear of the Lord and finding the knowledge of God. Wisdom, in Proverbs, is always moral.
The fool is the person who does not live life God’s way.
Wisdom is knowing God and doing as...
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Biblical wisdom means living a disciplined and prudent life in the fear of the Lord.
God says, “Don’t ask to see all the plans I’ve made for you. Ask Me for wisdom so you’ll know how to live according to My Book.”
Too many of us want God to be the world-class scholar who will write our papers and live our lives for us, when God wants us to sit at His feet and read His Word so that we can live a life in the image of His Son.
We spend all this time asking God, “What’s Your will?” when He’s probably thinking, “Make a friend, would you? Go talk to someone. There’s a reason I’ve redeemed a lot of you—because you do fewer dumb things when you talk to each other. Get some advice. You might just hear My voice.”
If you are drinking deeply of godliness in the Word and from others and in your prayer life, then you’ll probably make God-honoring decisions.
Study the Scriptures, listen to others, and pray continually—that’s the best course of action, not just at the moment of crisis, but as a way of life. And as you engage in these practices, don’t forget to make a decision—always with wisdom, always with freedom, and sometimes even with speed.
Complacency and contentment are often confused, but there is a difference between the two. Contentment is saying, “God has me here for a reason, and if He never does anything different, I’ll still serve and praise Him.” Complacency is saying, “Things will never change, so why bother trying?”
If you are going to be anxious about one thing, be anxious to keep His commandments. If we must fear something—and we all do—fear God, not the future.
God gives His children the will to walk in His ways—not by revealing a series of next steps cloaked in shadows, but by giving us a heart to delight in His law.