Can You Determine the Will of God for Specific Events in Your Life?

[Skipper80]

We know God's will for our life in the broad sense, of course:

1 Timothy 2:3–4 (ESV)
“This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

2 Peter 3:9 (NIV)
“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise... He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

1 Thessalonians 4:3 (NIV)
“It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality.”

Romans 12:1–2 (ESV)
“...present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God... Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 (NIV)
“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

1 Peter 2:15 (ESV)
“For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.”

Ephesians 2:10 (NIV)
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Micah 6:8 (NIV)
“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

John 13:34–35 (NIV)
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples...”

Matthew 22:37–39 (ESV)
“‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

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BUT, WHAT ABOUT SPECIFIC EVENTS IN YOUR LIFE?

Specific daily events that are trivial compared to the concepts and commands in these Bible verses.

For example, if my car broke down as I was going to the coffee shop to get coffee, am I right in saying it was God's will for the car to break down?

What are your thoughts, guys?

 

[SavedByGrace3]

We know God's will for our life in the broad sense, of course:

1 Timothy 2:3–4 (ESV)
“This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

2 Peter 3:9 (NIV)
“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise... He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

1 Thessalonians 4:3 (NIV)
“It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality.”

Romans 12:1–2 (ESV)
“...present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God... Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 (NIV)
“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

1 Peter 2:15 (ESV)
“For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.”

Ephesians 2:10 (NIV)
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Micah 6:8 (NIV)
“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

John 13:34–35 (NIV)
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples...”

Matthew 22:37–39 (ESV)
“‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

BUT, WHAT ABOUT SPECIFIC EVENTS IN YOUR LIFE?

Specific daily events that are trivial compared to the concepts and commands in these Bible verses.

For example, if my car broke down as I was going to the coffee shop to get coffee, am I right in saying it was God's will for the car to break down?

What are your thoughts, guys?

It starts by obeying what you know to do. Don't sin. Don't go places you know you should not go to. Don't be with people the word says don't be with. Love as much as possible when they let you. Do what he says! This will serve to condition your spirit to hear what God says. If you are not willing to do what you know what to do, it could be hard for you to hear living words.

Luke 16:28-31 KJV
28 For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

As far as events in your life being God speaking to you. I do not see this as true. Things happen to people in the "course of nature." IOWs, stuff just happens. People get the flu because the virus is in the air and you breathed it in. Someone went through a stop sign and bashed your car. A an axe head came loose and killed someone. This is not God talking to you. This is just stuff happening. Accidents. Chance occurrences. These are solid scriptural teaching.
There is the discussion "is God in control of everything." Some insist that for "God to be God" he has to be in control of everything from the rotation of electrons around an atom to the collision of Galaxies. I believe that when God created the universe He instituted rules that would guide creation. These are the rules of the course of nature. God's role at this time is one of an interviener, not an orchestrator. Not everything that happens is His hand. For instance there is the law of reaping and sowing. Can God intervene and change the course of events? Of course! But we need to understand that these are interventions, not orchestrations. Salvation is an intervention into the default state of lostness. Healing is an intervention against the default state of being sick. Delieverance is an intervention against the default state of being oppressed.
The point is that you cannot determine the will of God by things that happen in your life. Some are the result of the curse. You can only determine the will of God when He is acting.

 

[Skipper80]

It starts by obeying what you know to do. Don't sin. Don't go places you know you should not go to. Don't be with people the word says don't be with. Love as much as possible when they let you. Do what he says! This will serve to condition your spirit to hear what God says. If you are not willing to do what you know what to do, it could be hard for you to hear living words.

Luke 16:28-31 KJV
28 For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

As far as events in your life being God speaking to you. I do not see this as true. Things happen to people in the "course of nature." IOWs, stuff just happens. People get the flu because the virus is in the air and you breathed it in. Someone went through a stop sign and bashed your car. A an axe head came loose and killed someone. This is not God talking to you. This is just stuff happening. Accidents. Chance occurrences. These are solid scriptural teaching.
There is the discussion "is God in control of everything." Some insist that for "God to be God" he has to be in control of everything from the rotation of electrons around an atom to the collision of Galaxies. I believe that when God created the universe He instituted rules that would guide creation. These are the rules of the course of nature. God's role at this time is one of an interviener, not an orchestrator. Not everything that happens is His hand. For instance there is the law of reaping and sowing. Can God intervene and change the course of events? Of course! But we need to understand that these are interventions, not orchestrations. Salvation is an intervention into the default state of lostness. Healing is an intervention against the default state of being sick. Delieverance is an intervention against the default state of being oppressed.
The point is that you cannot determine the will of God by things that happen in your life. Some are the result of the curse. You can only determine the will of God when He is acting.

I don't think we can obey the command to not sin. At least I can't, maybe there is someone perfect out there who has never sinned besides Jesus. I know to repent and to love as best I can. I think that is more relevant to the instruction for our lives than "do not sin."

God has a plan for one's whole life which I would say denotes Him as orchestrator still currently.

 

[Yarddog]

We know God's will for our life in the broad sense, of course:

1 Timothy 2:3–4 (ESV)
“This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

2 Peter 3:9 (NIV)
“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise... He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

1 Thessalonians 4:3 (NIV)
“It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality.”

Romans 12:1–2 (ESV)
“...present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God... Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 (NIV)
“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

1 Peter 2:15 (ESV)
“For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.”

Ephesians 2:10 (NIV)
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Micah 6:8 (NIV)
“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

John 13:34–35 (NIV)
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples...”

Matthew 22:37–39 (ESV)
“‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

BUT, WHAT ABOUT SPECIFIC EVENTS IN YOUR LIFE?

Specific daily events that are trivial compared to the concepts and commands in these Bible verses.

For example, if my car broke down as I was going to the coffee shop to get coffee, am I right in saying it was God's will for the car to break down?

What are your thoughts, guys?

Sometimes but it is easier when you look back at a series of events. You can see how God was guiding you to a specific point.

 

[timothyu]

For example, if my car broke down as I was going to the coffee shop to get coffee, am I right in saying it was God's will for the car to break down?

Perhaps it is your reaction that God is interested in.

 

[linux.poet]

For example, if my car broke down as I was going to the coffee shop to get coffee, am I right in saying it was God's will for the car to break down?

Yes.

Isaiah 45:5-7
I am the Lord, and there is no other;
besides me there is no god.
I arm you, though you do not know me, so that they may know, from the rising of the sun
and from the west, that there is no one besides me;
I am the Lord, and there is no other. I form light and create darkness,
I make weal and create woe;
I the Lord do all these things.

And, the end of the Book of Job also says that God is in control of creation and events, and that we do not, as humans, have the right to question his control or blame other humans for God’s sovereign decisions.

 

[Richard T]

Absolutely God can give very specific guidance. For me a big area is geography. He tells me what city and country. Over the years, He has done this in many different ways. In some cases God also may give guidance to a specific employment opportunity. Life with God does not have to be random. There are many scriptures where God promises to lead and guide us. Here are a couple.

Isaiah 42:16 (NKJV) “I will bring the blind by a way they did not know; I will lead them in paths they have not known. I will make darkness light before them, And crooked places straight. These things I will do for them,And not forsake them.”

Jeremiah 10:23 (NKJV) “O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps.”

So in practical terms how do you get to the point of hearing God? You already heard Him regarding salvation, so guidance is just another step that He will take to order your life according to His will. Read books and scriptures about God's guidance to build you faith that He really does this. Then ask and expect Him to answer. I think where some get out of bounds on this is that they might hear things that they do not want like uprooting your life and moving somewhere. Sometimes too when we fail to act or even act like Jonah it grieves the Holy Spirit. The cure for those ignored items in the past is to ask forgiveness and move on. The important part though is your faith. Can you have faith for God to suggest a church? an event? a job? a new relationship? Can you shut the door on the old and embrace the new? Of course, God does not always tell you to move, many will have the same job and/or ministry for years.

For instance, I have been examining pastors that were called in the 1980s. I have found about seven that say that God called them to a specific town to start a church. Most lasted about 40 years, some are still going. In all cases the ones I found still have a church there that is effective if not the leading church of that city. The same town, the same church. Many of their stories are similar, just different places.

I admit too that circumstances can also dictate some things. Paul for some reason was forbidden by the Hoy Spirit to go to such and such places at some very specific times. Sometimes those that fail to act will get pushed out the door. If so, God does it because he loves that person and wants to give them a better opportunity.

 

[Fervent]

Perhaps, but are we sure that God has a specific intention for every trivial decision we make? It seems to me doing God's will is more about maintaining our integrety and preserving our witness rather than following a specified path. As for whether or not an event like your car breaking down falls under God's will for your life, that's a question that has done little good other than to foment division. If we lived as if everything that happened was God's will, we'd have no motivation to do anything because any action we take might put us at odds with God's will. So what does God will? Good for all who love Him and are called according to His purpose.

 

[Richard T]

Perhaps, but are we sure that God has a specific intention for every trivial decision we make? It seems to me doing God's will is more about maintaining our integrety and preserving our witness rather than following a specified path. As for whether or not an event like your car breaking down falls under God's will for your life, that's a question that has done little good other than to foment division. If we lived as if everything that happened was God's will, we'd have no motivation to do anything because any action we take might put us at odds with God's will. So what does God will? Good for all who love Him and are called according to His purpose.

Excellent points. Some do say they hear the trivial. Perhaps so, sometimes God may just want to fellowship with you, give someone the assurance of something small to build their faith for something later, or just to love on them. I admit too that the main path to hearing God is to let the word of God show you your character and conduct. Still, if there are some significant decisions, of course ask the Lord.

 

[Confused-by-christianity]

For example, if my car broke down as I was going to the coffee shop to get coffee, am I right in saying it was God's will for the car to break down?

What are your thoughts, guys?

I dont do this sort of stuff anymore. i used to - i would drive and say "god, speak to me, show me a sign" and them i'd hear the word in my imagination "turn on the radio". I'd obey. Then, it would be some stupid rubbish on that makes no sense. It was all my imagination. This happened loads of times. hearing god in this way was very hit and miss.

I realised I have my work cut out for me in separating god from my imagination.

In the end - i decided on doing this.

I would pray, and i would give up my will, and in my heart, fully open and aspire to do god's will - in intention.

All i could give god was my intent to do his will, and once i'd done that - patiently listen and see if he said anything (i accepted that what i hear can be wrong - my accuracy can be hit or miss - but i should try anyway and accept the disappointments)

 

[Skipper80]

Sometimes but it is easier when you look back at a series of events. You can see how God was guiding you to a specific point.

But how do u know the specific point you are at currently is where you're supposed to be? You would support this stance by using the events that followed up to it. How do you u know the preceding events were the will of God? You would support this stance by using the specific point you are at currently.

This is circular reasoning, and it doesn't make sense to me.
Do u have an alternate explanation for how you determine the will of God?

 

[Skipper80]

Perhaps it is your reaction that God is interested in.

What would your reaction be? Would you react by saying your car breaking down is the will of God?

 

[Skipper80]

Yes.

Isaiah 45:5-7
I am the Lord, and there is no other;
besides me there is no god.
I arm you, though you do not know me, so that they may know, from the rising of the sun
and from the west, that there is no one besides me;
I am the Lord, and there is no other. I form light and create darkness,
I make weal and create woe;
I the Lord do all these things.

And, the end of the Book of Job also says that God is in control of creation and events, and that we do not, as humans, have the right to question his control or blame other humans for God’s sovereign decisions.

How do u know it was the will of God? What if your car broke down because you mistreated it? Is it the will of god that you mistreat things? I don't think that is His will for one's life.

or what if your car just broke down by chance? That is just a by-product of living in a sinful world

 

[Skipper80]

Absolutely God can give very specific guidance. For me a big area is geography. He tells me what city and country. Over the years, He has done this in many different ways. In some cases God also may give guidance to a specific employment opportunity. Life with God does not have to be random. There are many scriptures where God promises to lead and guide us. Here are a couple.

Isaiah 42:16 (NKJV) “I will bring the blind by a way they did not know; I will lead them in paths they have not known. I will make darkness light before them, And crooked places straight. These things I will do for them,And not forsake them.”

Jeremiah 10:23 (NKJV) “O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps.”

So in practical terms how do you get to the point of hearing God? You already heard Him regarding salvation, so guidance is just another step that He will take to order your life according to His will. Read books and scriptures about God's guidance to build you faith that He really does this. Then ask and expect Him to answer. I think where some get out of bounds on this is that they might hear things that they do not want like uprooting your life and moving somewhere. Sometimes too when we fail to act or even act like Jonah it grieves the Holy Spirit. The cure for those ignored items in the past is to ask forgiveness and move on. The important part though is your faith. Can you have faith for God to suggest a church? an event? a job? a new relationship? Can you shut the door on the old and embrace the new? Of course, God does not always tell you to move, many will have the same job and/or ministry for years.

For instance, I have been examining pastors that were called in the 1980s. I have found about seven that say that God called them to a specific town to start a church. Most lasted about 40 years, some are still going. In all cases the ones I found still have a church there that is effective if not the leading church of that city. The same town, the same church. Many of their stories are similar, just different places.

I admit too that circumstances can also dictate some things. Paul for some reason was forbidden by the Hoy Spirit to go to such and such places at some very specific times. Sometimes those that fail to act will get pushed out the door. If so, God does it because he loves that person and wants to give them a better opportunity.

You attribute success to being aligned to the will of god. Is being rich and wealthy a sign of being aligned to God's will?

Another question is: how does one know they are not acting on emotional inclination rather than hearing the will of God?
I don't think God reveals Himself through personal experience. If someone believes that, then they are saying that the Bible is not sufficient to understand God. God has revealed Himself sufficiently throughout the Bible. To say otherwise is heresy.

 

[Skipper80]

Excellent points. Some do say they hear the trivial. Perhaps so, sometimes God may just want to fellowship with you, give someone the assurance of something small to build their faith for something later, or just to love on them. I admit too that the main path to hearing God is to let the word of God show you your character and conduct. Still, if there are some significant decisions, of course ask the Lord.

"Some do say they hear the trivial. Perhaps so, sometimes God may just want to fellowship with you"

By "hear" do you mean someone can literally hear God saying private things to them in their ear?

 

[Skipper80]

I dont do this sort of stuff anymore. i used to - i would drive and say "god, speak to me, show me a sign" and them i'd hear the word in my imagination "turn on the radio". I'd obey. Then, it would be some stupid rubbish on that makes no sense. It was all my imagination. This happened loads of times. hearing god in this way was very hit and miss.

I realised I have my work cut out for me in separating god from my imagination.

In the end - i decided on doing this.

I would pray, and i would give up my will, and in my heart, fully open and aspire to do god's will - in intention.

All i could give god was my intent to do his will, and once i'd done that - patiently listen and see if he said anything (i accepted that what i hear can be wrong - my accuracy can be hit or miss - but i should try anyway and accept the disappointments)

I too think that people nowadays who say they hear literal verbal commands from God in their mind are imagining things.

They think God has not sufficiently revealed Himself through the Bible which is nonsense. We live and know truth by the Word, not subjective personal experience.

 

[linux.poet]

How do u know it was the will of God? What if your car broke down because you mistreated it? Is it the will of god that you mistreat things? I don't think that is His will for one's life.

I don't mistreat my car. Obviously if someone mistreated their car and it broke down, that would be God's justice coming back to them.

I think you may be getting God's sovereign will and moral will confused. God does not, in His moral will, will us to sin. However, he sovereignly knows that we will and wills the actions/results of our bad choices.

or what if your car just broke down by chance?

There is no chance involved in car breakdowns. It has to do with a combination of the quality of the car's original construction, operating conditions that the car faces (salt, snow, water, all are factors in how long a car will last), regularity and quality of maintenance, how the vehicle is used, and sanity of the driver.

So a Chevrolet Vega (poorly constructed awful vehicle), operated in Minnesota (with terrible salty roads), that is barely ever maintained with infrequent oil changes and cheap used tires that is used to haul gravel in the trunk by a driver that is frequently drunk or high will have very high odds of breaking down.

By contrast, a Toyota Echo (very well constructed and reliable vehicle), operated in California (no salt), that has regular oil changes and tire rotations and replacements, in addition to coolant replacements and correct tire replacements as needed, and is used for standard grocery shopping and the carrying of passengers and commuting to school by a Christian driver who is sane will have much, much, much lower breakdown probability.

Not to mention the fact that if something breaks on the Echo it will likely be some dumb thing like the front passenger door lock motor, whereas on the Vega what will break will be something critical like the engine, carburetor, or the rear suspension from all of the gravel hauling (please do not try to haul gravel or landscape blocks, especially landscape blocks, in a unibody car trunk, don't ask me how I know that, it's a bad idea).

Cars aren't really the best way to think about God's will because they are actually almost entirely controlled by man, from car manufacturers to the roads to the drivers. When God was talking to Job he was talking about his explicit control over his creation. I mean, if your Echo door lock motor broke down because a rat crawled in it, that's God. Definitely Him. But if it's because of human error, than the human is responsible, chance is not a thing. Chance is an illusion created by our finite minds that don't understand all of the variables behind God's sovereign choices. It's not real.

 

[Bob Crowley]

If God is in control of all events, then the people who perished in the Holocaust and the Gulags were part of God's will.

I don't think so. He gives us freedom to choose, and some people use that choice to gain power over others. There is a spiritual war on, and in my opinion God sometimes (often) loses.

Protestants may not like this, but I don't think God wanted the Reformation to be as violent as it was. I think He expected Luther to die as a martyr and then He would have cleaned the church starting from there. But Luther took refuge with two German princes, neither of them known for saintly behaviour. From then on it became as much political as religious.

If William Shirer was correct (author of "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich") the German population decreased from about 16 million to 6 million in the century following Luther due to the wars of religion, and the depredations of those wars.

God's will? Not to my mind, to say nothing of the Nazi's use of Luther's antisemitic polemic centuries later.

God allows a lot of things to happen that He doesn't like or want.

 

[Yarddog]

But how do u know the specific point you are at currently is where you're supposed to be? You would support this stance by using the events that followed up to it. How do you u know the preceding events were the will of God? You would support this stance by using the specific point you are at currently.

This is circular reasoning, and it doesn't make sense to me.
Do u have an alternate explanation for how you determine the will of God?

Well, fortunately, I God has given me many gifts of the Holy Spirit. This helps me understand many things, of God's will for me.

I know certain things will occur but not when. God has spoken to me many times and told me that I was called into Faith. Which means I must trust God "only". (Not myself or what anyone else tells me.)

When I look back, I can see how a series of events has led me to where wants me to be

If I am doing something that I am not supposed to be doing, I start getting an anxiety attack.

As an example, many years ago, two Mormon women came by try to recruit people. I invited them in and started spreading God's word. They left me the book of Mormon, which I was curious to see what it claimed.

As I began to read, anxiety began to hit me. I put the book down, everything calmed down. I picked it up and began to read again and the anxiety returned. After the third time I realized that God was telling me not to read that book. (I threw it away and praised God.)

God gives his children the gift of the Holy Spirit through baptism. There are many gifts which we may receive through the Spirit but we need to search for what it may be. I pray for hours everyday. It is a wonderful experience to know the creator of all things listens. That response may come in a variety of ways and it may take years to understand what it was.

God bless

 

[timothyu]

Would you react by saying your car breaking down is the will of God?

We don't know His mind, but indeed it may have saved us from an alternate chain of events or led us to a new one. Personally I don't believe in the micro-management thing as that would negate the free will that got us in trouble with God in the first place