Everybody's Question: What is God's will for me???

Every Christian will always have this question..

"What is God's will for me??? How will I know if it is my will or HIS?"

It seems like a simple question, but everyone seems to have a hard time answering it each time it is asked. We always have a desire, a circumstance, or a dilemma. Each time we have these, we go back and ask ourselves..."How will I know if it is God's will or my will?", "Did I make the correct decision?", "Is she/he the one for me?", "Will I regret this?", and many more questions that pop to our mind in an instant. We all wish that there was a so-called Will-of-God meter; where we can just type in our questions and it will give us a YES or NO. We always want that instant yes or no. The answers are always, YES, NO, and most of the time, WAIT for the YES. Sometimes, if we want something; we will make every possible excuse or reasoning for it to be "the will of God". Wanting a non-Christian wife or husband, "if God doesn't want me to be with her, why would He have led me to her?", "But she makes me so happy". Doing something illegal or unbecoming of a Christian, "It's OK, everyone does it, so it's alright", "I always get opportunities for these, it means God is giving it to me. He wants me to take this blessing". This is the thing, whatever it is...we, as humans, can always come up with an excuse to make everything God's will. There is always a reason to want or not to want something.

I've asked a couple of my friends to determine what they personally apply to determine God's will... I've chosen some of them that I'm sure can be helpful to most of us.

Anyway, here are some of the answers:

[BTW, most of them have been rephrased for grammatical credibility].

Person A:

"If it is your will... in decision making, it is so easy to say yes. No sacrifices are made, and you're just happy. If it is God's will... it is always hard on your end, and it requires sacrifice."

Person B:

"I pray and ask God to give me peace of heart to the decision that will coincide to His will [I think he meant Biblical]; and if I'm doing something against His Will, He shouldn't allow me to have a peaceful heart."

Person C:

"1) There is no clear cut way of knowing.

 2) As long as it is Biblical (not a sin, not a direct disobedience to parents).

 3) After a certain amount of time in prayer, there is peace.

 4) General opinion of more spiritual mentors that approve.

Bottom line... if it is God's will, it will happen unless there is no "action" from that person. (i.e. if you don't work, you won't earn money).

As one pastor puts it... 'God just dictates one thing...Christianity. then it's free will to pick . I guess the obvious next question is finding the best.'"

Person D:

"I think I need to have the right relationship with God, and my heart and motive must be right and selfless also. And I should not cause anyone to stumble due to my decision."

Well, these answers are all from ordinary people. But how about pastors, pastors who have heavily experienced God in the "search for His will".

Pastor A:

"One will never know for sure. We just need to trust God. This is assuming we are not violating any Biblical commands. Pray and ask for God's leading. Use the wisdom that God has given you. You can do trial and error, as long as you are not committing any sin."

Pastor B:

"Peace is the key. If you have peace then it is God's will. If not, then wait some more."

Pastor B: [second answer, "baduy dw" 1st answer]

"We can never know for sure, we can only assume His will for us. But in the end, we can confirm if it was His will or not. There are a lot of factors to consider before you take action. 

1) Sin issue must be out of the picture. 

2) Readiness of people involved - emotionally, financially, spiritually, - readiness to take on the responsibilities, consequences, and demands of it. 

3) PEACE (haha!) - do you have peace in your heart? if none, then wait for the peace of God to fill your heart before you decide on something.

4) as one speaker has said, "we must be action-oriented, because God will always close the door on us if it is not His will, and open another door leading to His will.

5) walk with God and He will never lead you astray"

Finally, this is what the Bible says...

Philippians 4:4-7

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

I personally liked Person A's answer more, but the keyword here is PEACE. I'm sorry for those who thought I could give you an answer, but there is really no clear cut answer. God just gave us methods to understand His will. We all know when we sin, even if we don't admit it. That's why we have the Holy Spirit within us. If you really think that there is not even a hint of guilt in whatever sinful thing you are doing, I suggest you re-evaluate your acceptance of salvation. I'm happy God gave us free will and doesn't dictate us. Imagine a world where we are all like robots. No free will, just do whatever we are told. 

Remember to pray to have peace, then you'll know His will. BTW, can anyone of you guess who pastor B is?hahah....