I often use God’s will as an excuse. I have a rationale as to why I do this. I want to please God. I desperately want to please God! I want my life to honor Him and so I don’t want to make decisions that don’t. That sounds good doesn’t it? The problem is that God doesn’t often speak in burning bushes. In fact to my knowledge He hasn’t spoken in a burning bush since his conversation with Moses. I’d love it if just one time He spoke audibly. I’d take a burning bush, TV, squirrel, lawn gnome, Afro, pocket lint, pizza delivery boy, or anything else that I could roast marshmallows on. So because I haven’t heard God’s audible voice I decide to do nothing. I’d rather not move then take a chance of messing up with God.
For every burning bush in the Bible there are, I would say, 57 1/2 examples of people acting without hearing from God. Now at my office we have a saying. If you say the phrase “I would say” before you give a number or stat it puts a lot of weight to your statement. It doesn’t matter if there is no scientific proof behind what you claim. If you say “I would say” people will take your number seriously. I digress. Follow me on this one though. We’d love to have a burning bush moment with God but think about all the great things that people did for God without experiencing the en fuego bush. I just went Spanish on this post.
- David was a little shepherd boy when he stepped up and battled a Giant to the death. David didn’t know the outcome and the Bible doesn’t say that God told Him to do it. He acted on what He thought was right. He didn’t wait until God audibly spoke.
- Jonathan attacked a whole army with just his sword bearer and he won! He didn’t sit around waiting for God to speak.
- Jesus’ disciples needed to replace Judas. He betrayed Jesus and then killed himself leaving a void. The disciples prayed and then cast lots. Gasp! I don’t know if casting lots involved dice, sticks, their cloaks or something else but they made a decision by using some type of system of chance. They prayed before they cast lots. They asked God for wisdom and then acted. Now don’t get hung up on casting lots. The point is that they acted.
I could give more examples but I think people would zone out and stop reading this post. The point is that people didn’t always hear an audible voice from God before they acted. If what you are seeking to do doesn’t go against the Bible, you have sought wise counsel, and you have prayed to God about the matter then do something. See if God opens the door. You want to change jobs? Don’t wait for someone to present the perfect job for you. Seek God. Seek Godly council. Read Quitter by Jon Acuff, and then take action. You want to get married? Don’t sit around in your PJ’s hoping that Mcdreamy, Mcsteamy, or Mcrib will come calling. Pray. And then take action. Whether it’s asking someone to set you up, signing up for a dating service, or joining a club that has a lot of singles do something.
This is one of those posts that is directly pointed at myself. I am plagued by fear and so I freeze. I don’t take action. I don’t move. But if God hasn’t said no audibly then maybe it’s time to take action?
Do you use God’s will as an excuse?
Dang it Rob. Can I still post my Prayer Paralysis power tomorrow?
Larry, for sure. I look forward to reading what you put down.
Like you, I desperately desire to please God. I want my life to fulfill His desire for me. In the past I spent way too much time saying I want to know god’s will and then either wait around too long fretting or moving ahead too quickly and hope I am “reading Him right.” Should have waited. 🙂 I still pray and try to be patient but I also think God is in my decision because He is in my life. Is this pleasing to Him should be a major question. Would I bring dishonor to His Name by this choice? This is a big subject Rob. One that can’t be solved in a blog. But when you do, please let me know. I can stop waiting. 🙂
Bill, I hear ya. And I doubt I’ll ever figure it out but we talk about it one day in Heaven. I think that’s the only time we will truly know.
This is so cool that you wrote on hearing God speak to us. My 13 year old and I were having a discussion on this very subject a couple of days ago. I can’t wait to let him read your blog. I hope it helps answer some of his questions on the topic. He has a lot of respect for you, and it will be great for him to see you have some of the same questions and struggles he is having. Thanks for taking ACTION and writing your blog! I love reading them! I know that God is using your blog to encourage me, and I’m sure a lot of other people as well.
Stacy, thank you for your comment. It was a HUGE encouragement to me this morning!
I think as we grow in God we are able to make smarter, more spiritual decisions. People that use God’s will as an excuse is like a grown man waiting for his wife to tell to go buy milk when there is none in the fridge.
ROFL, Moe-love your analogy there. 🙂
Moe, that was a great example! But sometimes I wait for my wife to tell me to do stuff. I’m pathetic.
Agh, I wished that God would use a bull horn to tell me what He wants sometime. But then again, I wonder even then in my stuborness if I’d listen. This post brought to mind that I do the same. I tend to wait and “God will give me a sign”. He already has His Word! Recently I have felt a strong urge to share the gospel with every single person in my family. And extended family. If you knew anything about my family i.e. dad, mom, cousins, aunts, uncles..you would know just how challenging this is going to be! I have been waiting for God to show me the “right” time to witness to them..Well as the old saying goes no better time than the present right? I will start making calls, skype visit’s, emails, and visit TONIGHT!!! Great encouragement.
Joseph, good for you! Go for it!
But if we wait and act on “God’s” will and things go haywire, at least we have someone to blame. It couldn’t ever be our own fault. Right?
Daniel…um…I think there is a clause for that somewhere in the Bible.
I’m reminded of a story: A man spends his days praying “Dear God, please let me win the lottery.” Every day he prays this, but he never wins. When he dies and comes face to face with God he says, “Heavenly Father, why, though I prayed every day, did you never let me win the lottery?” To which God replies, “My child, why did you never meet me half way…and buy a ticket?”
To put it in a more scriptural basis, “…ASK and you shall receive, KNOCK and the door will be opened…”
God requires us to act and gave us the Bible to guide those actions.
Randal, who are you and where did you come from? I love this comment! I love that story! I will use that in a talk one day. Thank you for posting a comment.
If I wanted God’s will in every every of our life, I’d be a copy of Han Solo in Carbonite.
I try not to focus too much on His Will for my life…because I have no idea what it is other than doing SOMETHING with my life
The Bible says, “pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thess 5:17-18. This verse helps me understand God’s will. It’s his will to pray continually and to give thanks in all circumstances. Sometimes bad circumstances are God’s will and we should thank Him no matter what. That’s God’s will.
Sometimes – when it’s convenient for me to do so. But usually I use myself as the excuse these days. Far too many times do people pull the “God Card” out of their pocket and as you know – that trumps EVERYTHING!!
Cindy, very true. I hate making that excuse but I do it.
Deep thoughts Rob, I had a professor one time suggest God doesn’t want us to rely more on him for guidance as we grow but less, like a parent with kids, as they grow you don’t want them relying more on you for decisions but want them to grow in wisdom and know what to do, he thought maybe God looked at us the same way.
Sirvhim, that’s an interesting theory. I’m not sure there is Biblical evidence to support it but it’s interesting. Thank you for sharing that.
I don’t recall if he offered biblical support for his theory, but it makes me think of Solomon, who God gave great wisdom to for decision making and Daniel and his 3 compatriots who were also blessed with knowledge. I think the idea is similar to your idea of taking action, God isn’t necessarily going to give us signs and direction for every choice we make every day, but that we are to act using the wisdom and knowledge God has blessed us with.
Totally agree. God has taught me the most about how He sees me, by how I see my kids. When they were young, and I took them to the playground, I gave them the boundaries, and told them to love the other kids and not be selfish and then go have fun! I didn’t want or expect them to ask me every single time they got on a swing, jumped on a merry go round or climbed the slide. They didn’t need my permission to play in the sand. Hey,I TOOK them there! The only kids who were constantly asking their dads, were the ones who were afraid of their father:)
I used to have friends that were always saying that they got this or that “word” from the Lord. There was an extreme reliance on that inward witness, on the Holy Spirit “speaking” to them. I used to wonder what was wrong with me–was in fact a little jealous–until they got divorced. Guess they got a “word” about that one, too!
Point is: impressions are just impressions, and as you so rightly point out, we need to:
Be in the Word
Seek godly counsel, and
Act
Please understand that I’m not diminishing the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, but rather cautioning against exalting feelings over what we know is right.
Chad (formerly known as Randomly Chad on robshep.com),
I hear ya. I have often been jealous of people who hear from God often. It makes me sad when bad stuff happens to them.
Love the David example.
I’m gonna go find the biggest baddest dude in my neighborhood and tear him a new one.
TMZ, let me know how that goes.
If we walk in the Spirit, what we do will be the right thing. So being filled with the Spirit has replaced concerning myself doing what is right, because the latter will follow the former. That is how I am understanding what Scripture says these days.
Yes
yeah…there are many conclusion for this.