How Can I know God’s Will?

Have you ever prayed about something, needing to know, “Lord, Should I do this or that?” Then you wondered how you could really know what God’s will was?

Since God doesn’t speak audibly to us, it can feel frustrating to know His answer…until we learn how He answers us.

God uses His Word, Prayer, and the Church Body to speak to us and reveal His will if we are willing to patiently wait on His timing to reveal the answer. Sometimes it’s immediate, but often we must wait.

Let me share two examples from my own life.

• About four years ago, Dale and I knew God had burdened our hearts for ministry couples and marriages. We thought we would have people in our home where we could host them and give counsel and encouragement. We prayed about it but we couldn’t make anything work. We tried to find under an umbrella ministry to work under that was doing what we desired to do – encourage ministry couples. However, no other ministry fit what we knew God wanted us to do. We waited and continued to pray. Then as we prayed individually, we both felt the Lord was telling us to step out in faith and trust Him. The very day we announced that we were starting D and D Ministries to encourage pastors and also marriages, we received two invitations to come to churches and do a marriage conference. We’ve never asked for a meeting or advertised and our schedule has been full for the past three years. This situation was God answering over a period of time through prayer and the Church.
• Recently our small group met in our home as we’ve done for the last six years. Our group had really dwindled with the attendance decreasing in the recent months. My husband asked that the four of us that had gathered to pray and seek God’s will for our group. I think we were all praying about how we could get everyone connected again, but as we prayed, the Lord brought to my mind a recent conversation I’d had with a member of one of the other small groups in our church. She mentioned that they needed older people because they have several young families attending and they were lacking the wisdom that older people could bring. When I mentioned that after our prayer time, we all realized that the Lord was asking us to shut down our small group so our older members could go join this needy young group. The answer was immediate through our time of prayer.

Do you see how God brought the answers? I think we often miss what God is doing because

1.) We aren’t making the connections after we pray.

Or

2.) We aren’t willing to wait.

God wants you to know His will, but it’s connected with His desire for a relationship with you. Draw near to Him. Love Him. Read His Word. Pour out your heart in prayer and then wait. He will reveal His will so you can join Him in His work and it will be exciting!! Ask me how I know. 🩷

For a deep dive into this subject, read Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby. It’s excellent.