Knowing God's Will

One of the phrases that Christians like to use a lot is "God's will". And for good reason. In Mark 3, Jesus says that the people who obey God's will are his true family. Paul writes in Romans 12 that we should offer ourselves as living sacrifices to God so that we can know His will. So, God's will is definitely an important thing to know.

So how do we know it? Yeah, yeah, I know that we can know God's will through prayer, studying scripture, quieting our lives to listen to His voice, etc. I've got that. What I'm asking is, how do we know that what we believe to be God's will is actually God's will? Have you ever wondered about that?

When I came to my current ministry, it was a series of things falling into place neatly and perfectly that led me to believe that it was God's will for me to be here. I was finishing up college and needed a job. The pastor was someone that I had interned with at his last church. He called me up out of the blue to do a summer internship the summer before my senior year. He and the elders worked all throughout my senior year of college to exhort the congregation to increase their giving so that they could hire me full-time. The congregation responded. It was truly a 'perfect storm' of all the things happening that needed to happen, all at the right time. It was pretty clear to me that God had called me here.

But what if it's not the same story in your situation? What if you're faced with two or even three choices that all seem equally good (or equally bad)? What if God is calling you to something that isn't comfortable, or doesn't 'all fall into place'? What if you've prayed and prayed, studied and studied, cancelled your cable so that you'd be less distracted from God's voice, and you still don't have certainty? 

I'd love to hear your answers to those questions, because I don't have any foolproof ones. I'm just as human, just as uncertain, just as foolish as anyone else when it comes to the things of God. But it's important for us all to know God's will and calling for our lives, so we have to keep striving towards knowledge and understanding.

Why?

If I'm remembering correctly, this is now the 5th time I've started a blog. That means that there are the carcasses of 4 previous blogs out there somewhere in the ether... Even as I sit and type this, I have serious doubts as to what will happen down the road with this one.


My last blog was called 'Images and Words'. The description below the title said that it was a place to dialog about life and ministry. The problem was that I almost never posted  anything about either life or ministry. In general, I posted about whatever was running through my head that day. Sometimes it was a deep thought. Sometimes a rant. Sometimes a look at something that may or may not have been part of the human experience. I did regularly recap each episode of American Idol last season (after Hollywood week was over). In the end, I think that's part of the reason that I let Images and Words die. I looked back at 6 or 7 months worth of blogging and felt like it was all pretty meaningless.


Is it that I don't have anything important or interesting to say? I like to think I'm a pretty interesting person. My wife thinks I am. And I certainly like to believe that I've got important things to say. I'm a youth pastor, for crying out loud. I'm part of a group of people who have the MOST important things to say, when it all comes down to it.


So why? Why do I have four failed blogs floating around the internet? And why did I just create a fifth? "Why, Mr. Anderson? Why? Why do you persist?" I don't know. The title of this blog was initially 'Life and Ministry'. My intention was to post things that are relevant to one or both. In my head, I see myself posting about things that have happened or are happening to me, lessons that I've learned, struggles that I'm going through, joys that I've experienced, and other stuff like that. But maybe that's been my problem all along. Maybe my scope has been too large. Maybe I don't know enough, or aren't settled enough, to even nail down a scope at all.


Here's what I know for sure: I talk a lot. I don't always talk about important things, but sometimes I do. I'm no great communicator. I love people. I love stories. I love God. I'm a youth pastor, but I'm not experienced enough or awesome enough to regularly feel like I have much to pass on to others who are in ministry. I would love to pass stuff on to my students through this blog, but none of them read blogs. I don't think their parents do, either.


So here's the punchline - Right now this blog is titled '???'. At some point in the future, my hope is that I'll find a groove or a niche, and that a title will come from that. Because let's be honest, '???' is a pretty crappy blog title. God willing, I will find my place as a productive blogger. But if not, there's always meaningless culture commentary.


Season 9 of American Idol is just around the corner, after all...


Peace.