One of the keys to understanding how to follow God’s best plan for our lives, is to understand that you have the right to choose and make decisions for your life.
God created you with the right to choose your own destiny.
Deuteronomy 30:19-20 | NLT (19) “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! (20) You can make this choice by loving the LORD your God, obeying Him, and committing yourself firmly to Him. This is the key to your life. And if you love and obey the LORD, you will live long in the land the LORD swore to give your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”
Our decisions will either keep us in God’s highest and best for our lives or lead us away from the Lord’s plan.
Ephesians 2:10 | AMPC (10) For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].
There is a battle on the inside of all of us between our spirit and our flesh, fighting for the outcome of those decisions.
We have a choice to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit or the leading of our flesh and the world.
Which voice are you listening to today? Which voice is influencing your decisions in life? Are you following the leading of the Holy Spirit or are you following the voice of the flesh?
Galatians 5:16 | AMPC (16) But I say, walk and live [habitually] in the [Holy] Spirit [responsive to and controlled and guided by the Spirit]; then you will certainly not gratify the cravings and desires of the flesh (of human nature without God).
Understand this, God is not trying to make our lives dull and boring and no fun at all. He is desiring to keep us in His highest and best for our lives all the time.
I believe there are too many Christians in the earth today who aren’t fulfilling God’s highest and best for their lives, who aren’t walking in all that God has for them simply because they do not know what the will of God is for their lives.
There are those who are making bad decisions because they do not know what the right decision is to make.
Ephesians 5:15-17 | AMPC (15) Look carefully then how you walk! Live purposefully and worthily and accurately, not as the unwise and witless, but as wise (sensible, intelligent people), (16) Making the very most of the time [buying up each opportunity], because the days are evil. (17) Therefore do not be vague and thoughtless and foolish, but understanding and firmly grasping what the will of the Lord is.
Colossians 1:9-10 | AMPC (9) For this reason we also, from the day we heard of it, have not ceased to pray and make [special] request for you, [asking] that you may be filled with the full (deep and clear) knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom [in comprehensive insight into the ways and purposes of God] and in understanding and discernment of spiritual things– (10) That you may walk (live and conduct yourselves) in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him and desiring to please Him in all things, bearing fruit in every good work and steadily growing and increasing in and by the knowledge of God [with fuller, deeper, and clearer insight, acquaintance, and recognition].
God is saying that He wants us to fully understand what His will is for our lives, clearly and specifically. It is possible for us to know what He wants for our lives, what He desires for us and what pleases Him.
I do not believe that God desires for us to have to seek after the knowledge of His will like an Easter egg hunt where we waste so much time trying to figure out what it is but rather just walking in it.
The will of God for us can be divided into two categories:
- The general will of God that is made known unto us by His Word.
The Bible is filled with things that God tells us in His Word that are His will, His desire for our lives:
It is the will of God that we be saved, healed, delivered, and blessed.
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- It is the will of God for all men to be saved.
2 Peter 3:9 | NKJV (9) The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
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- It is the will of God for men to be healed.
Acts 10:38 | NKJV (38) how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.
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- It is the will of God for you to prosper and increase so that you can be a greater blessing.
Proverbs 10:22 | NIV (22) The blessing of the LORD brings wealth, and he adds no trouble to it.
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- It is the will of God for you to have peace and live free from worry and anxiety.
Philippians 4:6-7 | NKJV (6) Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; (7) and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
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- Though we all encounter tough times, and pressures in life, it is the will of God that we win and overcome every time.
2 Corinthians 2:14 | NKJV (14) Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.
- The specific will of God for our individual lives – where do we live, where do we work, who am I supposed to marry? These are made known to us as we are led by the Spirit.
In the things that God has not given us direction for in His Word, He wants us to be led by His Spirit in our spirits.
We must recognize that God is interested in all of the intimate details of our lives, not just the big things.
Luke 12:7 | NKJV (7) But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
Psalms 40:2 | AMPC (2) He drew me up out of a horrible pit [a pit of tumult and of destruction], out of the miry clay (froth and slime), and set my feet upon a rock, steadying my steps and establishing my goings.
God is interested in you being successful in every are of your life. In your business deals, in your trips to the grocery store, on your job…
Before God can direct our paths, we must first be willing to acknowledge Him in every area of our lives.
Proverbs 3:5-6 | TPT (5) Trust in the Lord completely, and do not rely on your own opinions. With all your heart rely on him to guide you, and he will lead you in every decision you make. (6) Become intimate with him in whatever you do, and he will lead you wherever you go.