Discerning Gods will for my life

Ben Collyer said:

How can I be sure God is willing that I proceed with this?

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God normally replies within 3 business days via email. ( make sure the email has the correct letterhead )So if you haven't heard from him after that, it means you can go ahead with the plan.

Ben Collyer said:

Hi guys, I was planning to do a 10 week business course in september which would result in me having a small E-commerce business at the end of it. I have prayed to God in a number of ways to help me decide for example

-Lord if it is not your will for this business to go ahead, please stop it from happening

-Lord if it not your will for this business to go ahead, then may a hand written letter from a n old friend appear at my door in 3 days time

Lord please give me peace if it is your will. (I neither feel turmoil nor peace about it.)

How can I be sure God is willing that I proceed with this?

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For the direct theological and moral guidance go to Scripture.

However, your personal circumstances are not mentioned in Scripture, so the sense of guidance that you might receive from praying about your circumstances may be strong, but of a different category from what is directly revealed in God's Word.

Hey brother Ben,

Do you feel turmoil / lack of peace if you don't do it as well?
Sometimes we as folks can be un-easy about things, and bothered and
GOD wants us to get over our fears (in LOVE and GOD is LOVE, there is no fear).

So its not the tension that is GOD saying don't do it rather our own insecurities
and fearfulness that stops us.

One time I was driving and could go right or left to get to my destination but didn't
like either option! So, ..."LORD, which way do I turn?" was my prayer.
Answer "wherever you go, I'm with you and IN you".

Sometimes we over think and over pray when GOD wants us to go.
Unless its something that is wrong, or not the wise choice which you know deep
down you shouldn't do, relax and enjoy the journey - you and JESUS with you forever!

-eric

Well if this is what you want then I don't understand why you wouldn't go ahead and do it. Rely on the scriptures as well: if your business idea is ok then you wouldn't find anything contrary to it in the Bible. If God really wants you to stop then you'll find out. Sometimes (and I think quite often) God can also be silent as well and then things are up to you. Do you want this? Is it something that suits your talents and the situation in life you have right now? If yes, the go and do it. See if it turns out good, if not then try again with a fresh idea. Above all, don't forget God. Keep praying and read your Bible. Don't let your success or lack thereof get between you and God. That's the best thing you can do.

I read a story of a man from San Francisco who, early one morning, pulled his car to a stop in the middle of the Golden Gate bridge, got out of the car, and then leaped from the bridge into the fog below.

This, unfortunately, is the same thing we do when launching out in such endeavors. It would be nice if we could have some heavenly jet write in the sky the things we must do to stay in God's will. More times than not, though, it is a leap of faith into the fog.

When going through such leaps of faith I would do the best I could and try to learn from any mistakes I made along the way.

Zig Ziglar was a Christian businessman who went from barely making it selling pots and pans to a major author and success in business management. And to my knowledge he never went to any kind of university. I have studied this guy and put his principles to work in my own life and was not sorry...

Ben Collyer said:

Hi guys, I was planning to do a 10 week business course in september which would result in me having a small E-commerce business at the end of it. I have prayed to God in a number of ways to help me decide for example

-Lord if it is not your will for this business to go ahead, please stop it from happening

-Lord if it not your will for this business to go ahead, then may a hand written letter from a n old friend appear at my door in 3 days time

Lord please give me peace if it is your will. (I neither feel turmoil nor peace about it.)

How can I be sure God is willing that I proceed with this?

Click to expand...

God does not micromanage our lives. Your desire to do what God wants you to do is commendable. However, His directions are often found in your passion since he puts the desires into our hearts. When I was new Christian at the age of 32 I desperately wanted to know God's will for my life. So I fasted and prayed seeking an answer from Him. At church a prophet gave me a prophetic word saying that God wanted me to teach the Bible. I thought that was great, however, how was I supposed to make my living?

My career was already established as a gymnastics coach. I had been coaching for 12 years. I came home from working at the Jewish Community Center and lay down on my bed and closed my eyes. Then I had a mental vision of Jesus in a long white robe running down a 100' rod platform performing a round off, back handspring, back layout. I thought the image so absurd I laughed out loud. Then I saw another image of the painting of the laughing Jesus and heard him speak to my heart, "Teach gymnastics, it is good for the kids."

The irony is that I thought that was not religious enough so I went to Bible School so I could be a paid minister of the Gospel. There I read a book by Watchman Nee called, "The Spiritual Man," where he made the statement that anything we do that is not led by the Spirit is a work of the flesh. I knew God wanted me at that Bible School, but God never showed me that he wanted me to be a paid minister. At that time Bob Tilton fell into disgrace for collecting prayer requests, taking the money out, then throwing the prayer requests away without reading them. Prior to my going to Bible School, Jim and Tammy Bakker were a huge scandal as well. So I went back to coaching gymnastics, which God had already told me to do.

I did not think that could be God's will because I was already doing it before becoming a Christian. But it was my life's passion. God puts the desires in our heart even before we know Him.

If you love business and are passionate about e-commerce, then you may already be in his will. If you are doing this from strictly an academic reason because it makes natural sense, it may not be His will. As others have already said, seek the peace of God. If you have a peace and are untroubled by the idea, then you are probably in His will. Even if you are not, you will find out soon enough that it is not His will if you move ahead with the project. He works best with us in motion, not frozen with indecision.

Ben Collyer said:

Hi guys, I was planning to do a 10 week business course in september which would result in me having a small E-commerce business at the end of it. I have prayed to God in a number of ways to help me decide for example

-Lord if it is not your will for this business to go ahead, please stop it from happening

-Lord if it not your will for this business to go ahead, then may a hand written letter from a n old friend appear at my door in 3 days time

Lord please give me peace if it is your will. (I neither feel turmoil nor peace about it.)

How can I be sure God is willing that I proceed with this?

Click to expand...

Seek Gods will for your prayer. God will hand you the correct prayer
then instantly answer it. If you keep making demands, your prayers fail each time.

Answered Prayer - Steps 1, 2, 3

There's no wrong way to pray- God knows what is in your heart, and if it's right, you need only pray and then know that He will do what is best for you.