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Am I Called? Knowing God’s Will: Introduction (Pt 1/6)

[This blog series explains how to discern God’s will. Continue on to the full blog series HERE.]

God speaks.

Those two words generate almost an entire theology—one that points to a God who cares deeply about the details of our lives, like where we live on mission with Him.

Tweet this: “God speaks. Those two words generate almost an entire theology.” @VergeNations

First, God is not unknowable. He puts Himself forward for us to know. He speaks to us and for us when we offer nothing in return. He spoke and creation came into being ex nihilo. God’s ability to communicate is not dependent on our ability to hear. He spoke and Lazarus was raised from the dead. He speaks and we are delivered from death and born again in Jesus Christ.

Second, being perfectly content in His internal union and glory, God has no need to speak to creation. His speaking is therefore a voluntary expression of His love for us.

Third, God speaks in a way that we can understand. He knows that we are, to put it bluntly, stupid sheep. When sheep are born, they do not know how to listen to their shepherd. But, as they grow in fellowship with the shepherd, they learn to hear His voice amidst all other noises. God is our Shepherd, and His sheep learn to recognize His voice and follow Him (John 10:27).

Fourth, God speaks today. He has spoken throughout history to His people and He still speaks to His people.

Sometimes, though, it is difficult to discern what God is saying. As maturing sheep within the Shepherd’s Kingdom, we are continually learning how to recognize God’s voice. When faced with big decisions in our lives, we are often prone to confusion, worry, discouragement, and inertia:

Where does God want me to go to college?

Is God calling our family to move to another location?

Does God want me to take this job offer?

What school does God want our child to go to?

Is God calling me to be an international missionary?

The good news is that God wants you to come to Him with these questions. He wants you to follow His leadership in the weighty matters of life as well as the countless mundane decisions that you make every day. But how do you practically go about discerning the will of God?

The primary means by which God speaks to us today is through the Bible, which we will address in next week’s post. The only way to be absolutely sure that you are hearing God speak accurately is through faithful interpretation of the Bible. God also uses our internal feelings, the perspective of others, and circumstances to communicate His “will.”

This six-post series will help you understand how to grow in hearing God’s voice and follow His leadership. Each post will walk you through a variable to consider as you discern God’s will in going to the nations.

Photo Credit: Deutsche Fotothek‎, via Wikimedia Commons

Next – Am I Called? Knowing God’s Will: The Bible