God's will, moment by moment

[trophy33]

Today, I understand myself to be a Christian. Next week, when my religious OCD attempts to yank that assurance from me, I'll have to remember Grantley Morris' advice: "Be committed to believing in spite of incessantly raging doubts." Also, I think I am going to be alone in my dealings with OCD. Yesterday, I searched online for Christian therapists specializing in religious OCD in my area. None were readily findable. Oh well; possibly just as well. Therapy might have been expensive and ineffective, any way.

There are many things you can do alone - diet, sleep, exercise, relax, stress management, supplements. It takes time, but you can heal this.

OCD is a problem with the chemistry mainly in your gut and brain and as such it is treatable by lifestyle changes. Some psychological or religious tips and tricks can be helpful with managing the issue, but you must fix the objective, "physical" causes to get rid of it.

 

[Strong in Him]

Thanks for your thought-provoking response.

You're welcome.

You're asking about me claiming to be a Christian.

I didn't mean to imply you're not. I was a bit confused because you said something like "if I end up being converted ....". This thread is in the section of the forum for new Christians so I assumed you are one.

That depends on the minute you ask me!For most of the past fifty years, I have basically understood myself NOT to be REAL Christian, headed for heaven. After my mother died in 2011, I began seeking salvation full-time. That has not stopped. Every time I think I've finally been saved, shortly later, the doubt returns. Part of my problem is religious OCD; I see a psychiatrist for my OCD and take meds. But no counseling or medications are going to save my soul. Yet I have just decided to officially seek Christian counseling for OCD because my OCD does not change, not for 14 years. Part of my problem is wavering faith, which the Bible calls "double-mindedness." My wavering, my double-mindedness is severe. It changes on a moment-by-moment basis. Typically, I "give my life to Christ" several times per day.

I'm sorry to hear of your OCD and your struggles.
I know very little about OCD, but I do know about listening to feelings and letting them dictate how much faith you have, whether you FEEL saved and so on.
I, too, gave my life to Jesus several times when I was a teenager. In my case, I believed, each time, that I was giving him my whole life. Then I would learn something new about myself and think "oh, so he can't have had my whole life last time", so I'd do it again.
When I had a good day, nice feelings, good things happen to me and so on, I'd believe that was evidence that God had accepted me and loved me; when I had a bad day and things went wrong, that obviously meant that God didn't accept, or love, me.
It took a long time for things to sink in, but eventually I realised that God himself had told me what love is "this is how we know what love is; Jesus Christ laid down his life for us", 1 John 3:16.
My feelings did not, and should not, dictate whether I am a Christian, whether I feel good enough or accepted or whatever. The NT says that if we believe in Jesus we have eternal life, John 3:16, John 3:36, and become his child, John 1:12.

Yes, we all need to rededicate our lives, time etc to God each day - we need to choose to treat others kindly, to love, to forgive, to serve and so on. Jesus said that he is the Vine and we are the branches - we have to choose to remain connected to him.
But offering our lives to God each morning is not the same as becoming a Christian all over again. Jesus talked about being born again and Paul said that one of his churches were babes in Christ. Babies grow - they don't make mistakes and then say, "sorry mum I need you to give birth to me again"! Children learn through mistakes and life experiences. Hopefully they will feel secure enough in their parents' love to push a few boundaries, try things out for themselves. Eg taking a job which their parents feel is wrong for them; either they will fight to make it work or they will say, "you were right" and try something else.

If you believe that Jesus came to die for your sins, you accept, and believe, what he taught and what he said about who he was and you have given your life to him, you are a Christian. You are a child of God, John 1:12, you have every spiritual blessing in Christ, Ephesians 1:3 and you have God's Holy Spirit living in you; the Spirit who gives gifts, helps you to bear fruit and who is changing you into Jesus' image and likeness, 2 Corinthians 3:18.
If that makes you want to praise God, fantastic, if you don't believe it, that's sad. Either way, you are a Christian and belong to him.

So am I a Christian? That depends on the moment you ask me!

No, that depends on what you believe about Jesus and whether you have given your life to him.
"Impressions" and feelings do not get to dictate whether or not you belong to God; he does. And he has told us the answer in his word, and showed it on the cross.
If you never had a good "feeling" again in your life, you are still his child and he loves you very much, 1 John 3:1.

 

[Bob8102]

This is a wrong way to see it. The impossibility in the text is not about technical, absolute impossibility like that you can not fly.

It is rather rhetorical - about our will. The change as such is technically possible - for example rich people can give up their riches or be saved.

I'm not sure about impossibility versus possibility. I will paraphrase an excerpt from JD Greear's book:
\
'A man is standing on the edge of the roof of a skyscraper. He is convinced he is a bird and can fly. If someone comes up to him and asks him to get away from the edge and come back to safety, he will not because he is convinced he can fly and is about to jump off the edge of the roof. No matter how many times he is asked and invited to come back to safety, he refuses. But if someone were able to sneak up behind him and inject with a serum which would return sanity to his mind, and THEN he is asked to come back off the edge, he agrees to come back to safety. Every time he is asked, with the serum in him, he agrees to come back to safety.' This illustration is used in a section of a chapter of his book, subtitled, "Repentance involves a Spirit-fueled change of desires."

I just read a verse, which I want to now pair with another verse. The two verses are: "It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me." AND "With men this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.'

In that my assurance is once again hanging in the balance, I want to comment on these two verses. For it to be not I who live but Christ lives in me, I have to be replaced by Jesus. I do not want someone else to be me; I want to be me. I don't even want Jesus to replace me! It is impossible for me to want it to be "no longer I who live." But Jesus said, with men this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.

I am standing on the edge of the roof and it is impossible for me to want to return to safety. I need a Spirit-fueled change of desires.

 

[Bob8102]

You're welcome.

I didn't mean to imply you're not. I was a bit confused because you said something like "if I end up being converted ....". This thread is in the section of the forum for new Christians so I assumed you are one.


I'm sorry to hear of your OCD and your struggles.
I know very little about OCD, but I do know about listening to feelings and letting them dictate how much faith you have, whether you FEEL saved and so on.
I, too, gave my life to Jesus several times when I was a teenager. In my case, I believed, each time, that I was giving him my whole life. Then I would learn something new about myself and think "oh, so he can't have had my whole life last time", so I'd do it again.
When I had a good day, nice feelings, good things happen to me and so on, I'd believe that was evidence that God had accepted me and loved me; when I had a bad day and things went wrong, that obviously meant that God didn't accept, or love, me.
It took a long time for things to sink in, but eventually I realised that God himself had told me what love is "this is how we know what love is; Jesus Christ laid down his life for us", 1 John 3:16.
My feelings did not, and should not, dictate whether I am a Christian, whether I feel good enough or accepted or whatever. The NT says that if we believe in Jesus we have eternal life, John 3:16, John 3:36, and become his child, John 1:12.

Yes, we all need to rededicate our lives, time etc to God each day - we need to choose to treat others kindly, to love, to forgive, to serve and so on. Jesus said that he is the Vine and we are the branches - we have to choose to remain connected to him.
But offering our lives to God each morning is not the same as becoming a Christian all over again. Jesus talked about being born again and Paul said that one of his churches were babes in Christ. Babies grow - they don't make mistakes and then say, "sorry mum I need you to give birth to me again"! Children learn through mistakes and life experiences. Hopefully they will feel secure enough in their parents' love to push a few boundaries, try things out for themselves. Eg taking a job which their parents feel is wrong for them; either they will fight to make it work or they will say, "you were right" and try something else.

If you believe that Jesus came to die for your sins, you accept, and believe, what he taught and what he said about who he was and you have given your life to him, you are a Christian. You are a child of God, John 1:12, you have every spiritual blessing in Christ, Ephesians 1:3 and you have God's Holy Spirit living in you; the Spirit who gives gifts, helps you to bear fruit and who is changing you into Jesus' image and likeness, 2 Corinthians 3:18.
If that makes you want to praise God, fantastic, if you don't believe it, that's sad. Either way, you are a Christian and belong to him.


No, that depends on what you believe about Jesus and whether you have given your life to him.
"Impressions" and feelings do not get to dictate whether or not you belong to God; he does. And he has told us the answer in his word, and showed it on the cross.
If you never had a good "feeling" again in your life, you are still his child and he loves you very much, 1 John 3:1.

Sorry, I did not notice this response of yours before I posted the above. Thanks for your response. I'm glad to hear of people who repeatedly give their lives to Christ. That means I'm not alone. I have a poem, which I posted in this forum years ago, which starts with "I gave my life to Christ a thousand times." It has a line: "So I prayed again to firm cement it, making sure I really meant it." So, I am not alone.

In the response previous to this in this thread, I said it is impossible for me to want: "It is not I who live, but Christ lives in me." I need a Spirit-fueled change of desires. In some ways, I think this change might be happening. But, before responding today, I realized I've got to stand and look at, "It is not I who live, but Christ lives in me." I've got to face that. Then I have to accept it.

 

[trophy33]

I'm not sure about impossibility versus possibility. I will paraphrase an excerpt from JD Greear's book:
\
'A man is standing on the edge of the roof of a skyscraper. He is convinced he is a bird and can fly. If someone comes up to him and asks him to get away from the edge and come back to safety, he will not because he is convinced he can fly and is about to jump off the edge of the roof. No matter how many times he is asked and invited to come back to safety, he refuses. But if someone were able to sneak up behind him and inject with a serum which would return sanity to his mind, and THEN he is asked to come back off the edge, he agrees to come back to safety. Every time he is asked, with the serum in him, he agrees to come back to safety.' This illustration is used in a section of a chapter of his book, subtitled, "Repentance involves a Spirit-fueled change of desires."

I just read a verse, which I want to now pair with another verse. The two verses are: "It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me." AND "With men this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.'

In that my assurance is once again hanging in the balance, I want to comment on these two verses. For it to be not I who live but Christ lives in me, I have to be replaced by Jesus. I do not want someone else to be me; I want to be me. I don't even want Jesus to replace me! It is impossible for me to want it to be "no longer I who live." But Jesus said, with men this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.

I am standing on the edge of the roof and it is impossible for me to want to return to safety. I need a Spirit-fueled change of desires.

I think you are mixing too much together.

 

[walkswithFire]

I know lots of Christians have confusion and questions about God's will. I am one of them. I am unsure about, am confused about, the line .... or the area, or the wall, or the chasm, or whatever....between God's will and my will. Often, during prayer time in the online Bible study that I attend, someone prays, "Your will be done, not mine." I have a hard time praying that in sincerity and keeping up the doing of that choice. As I try over and over again, I may be increasing the sincerity of a prayer like that; I don't know. I'd like to ask at least one of these people, "Last time, you prayed, at the end of Bible study, 'Your will be done, not mine.' What did you do in the next moment after the end of the study? What did you do in the next few minutes? How do you know what you did was God's or your will?"

I heard one time on the Christian radio, a preacher/teacher say some story something like this: 'My daughter had been bad and I had sent her up to her room. As dinner time approached, she called down and asked "Dad, may I come down for dinner?" I said, "Yes." That was appropriate for her to ask that. But, if during dinner, she had asked things like, "Dad, may I take my next bite of food?" and "Dad, may I chew the bite of food I just took?" and "Dad, may I swallow that bite of food now?" that would have been unnecessary and aggravating and *I* would have run away from home!' That story sounds very reasonable, yet it brings up the question about the line between a believer's will and God's will. Actually, it looks like there is a slippery slope between God's will and the individual believer's will. There is a slippery slope somewhere between, "Dad, may I come down for dinner?" and, "Dad, may I take my next bite of food?" I've heard some Christian advice that you don't have to ask God's will when deciding what shirt to wear for a day or what to eat for breakfast, indicating that a lot of things are up to us. But there is a slippery slope between deciding what shirt to wear and deciding on a career or who to marry. In fact, there is a slippery slope when it comes to, "What does God want me to do in the very next moment?"

Good afternoon, @Bob8102, tricky indeed. I have found that if we are looking to determine between our will and God's will, we first need to know his character. His character is found in his word. When you read the bible consistently, you begin to understand his personality. Once you find out his personality, it's not difficult to understand what his will is. God never goes against his own word. His will is always that we listen and obey.

Which is opposite to what we want to do. You can measure what we want to do and what he wants us to do based on the outcome. If the outcome is for our benefit but does not include the benefit of others, it's probably our will functioning lol! If what we want to do glorifies ourselves rather than God, it's not his will. If what we want to do leads us into sin, it's not from God. What you wear for the day is your choice; however, always be ready and open to changing clothing based on the Holy Spirit's leading since God may use you as part of his divine appointment and put you on someone's path, telling them what you will be wearing Lol!

Blessings brother! walks

 

[Aaron112]

I am unsure about, am confused about, the line .... or the area, or the wall, or the chasm, or whatever....between God's will and my will.

This is most common, very common, (if someone cares at all) , for humans.
God has a solution.
It is called suffering. (including discipline, chastisement, beatings, scourging, pain, trials, persecutions and so on in line with all Scripture).

God is using suffering to discipline His sons, to change their /our/ way of thinking from the way of men to His Way, (i.e. getting out thoughts to be in line with His, very well)

 

[St_Worm2]

I know lots of Christians have confusion and questions about God's will. I am one of them. I am unsure about, am confused about, the line .... or the area, or the wall, or the chasm, or whatever....between God's will and my will.

Hi Bob, I'm a little late to the party, but I thought that I'd join in anyway As far as your confusion and questions about God's will go, I've often thought that it would be wonderful if there were more verses and passages that started off like this one does, by plainly stating,

1 Thessalonians 4​

3 ~This is the will of God~, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality; ​

4 that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, ​

5 not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God.​

I think that such an approach only happens in the Bible when great clarity is called for, and because that's not the way that His will (for us personally) is typically discovered by us. Here are two verses that should be far more helpful with that however (with two of the principal ways that we discover His will for us, that is, one OT and one New):

Psalm 37​

4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.​

​

Romans 12​

2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. ​

Also, here's an excellent and free, 2-part online teaching series called, The Will of God, from Ligonier's/Dr. R C Sproul's broadcast ministry called, Renewing Your Mind. They're each about 20 minutes long or so, and they deal with the topic of knowing God's will from different perspectives, the first part in the series talking as much about what we should not do when seeking His will as what we should do to find it

Here's a link to the 2-part teaching series if you'd care to listen to it (including God's Will and the Bible and God's Will and Your Vocation).

~The Will of God by R.C. Sproul | Ligonier Ministries

If you have the time to listen, let me know what you discover, as I believe that the teaching series and the two verses above should lead you to the same, principal conclusion (about how to find God's will for your life).

Often, during prayer time in the online Bible study that I attend, someone prays, "Your will be done, not mine." I have a hard time praying that in sincerity and keeping up the doing of that choice. As I try over and over again, I may be increasing the sincerity of a prayer like that; I don't know. I'd like to ask at least one of these people, "Last time, you prayed, at the end of Bible study, 'Your will be done, not mine.' What did you do in the next moment after the end of the study? What did you do in the next few minutes? How do you know what you did was God's or your will?"

You could ask the Lord Jesus Himself the same question, yes .. e.g. Luke 22:42.

I've gotta go for now, but I hope to return soon (Dv).

God bless you!!

--David
p.s. - this was a blind post (as I haven't even skimmed my way through this entire thread yet), so if these things have already been discussed, I apologize.

 

[Bob8102]

David, thanks for your response. I haven't yet gotten to the videos you mentioned, but will get to them. I did not assuredly, permanently become a Christian until the time of my commitment on March 17th. This morning, I have periodically been saying to Jesus, "I need to learn to seek your will." As I carry on with my morning tasks, I am trying to remember "Whatsoever you do, do it heartily, as unto the Lord, and not as unto men." In doing any particular task, I may think of that line at first, but then just start concentrating on the task itself. It seems to me, in the past, that when I get to concentrating on a task, that my heart immediately shifts into the mode of: "I'm doing this of, by, and for myself; that's the only practical way to get ghings done, is to do them as I have always done them." ....Excuse me,, I am having so much trouble typing this in; I don't know if the problem is with my computer or with the Chrsitian FOrums website. Since I cannot type this in while the screen is in this mode, I will just quit typing, now.

 

[St_Worm2]

Hello again Bob (@Bob8102), I'm sorry to hear that you're having technical difficulties, but those things happen from time to time, so I look forward to hearing more when they have passed.

As far as the teaching series goes, no worries, get to it when and if you can (the 2-part series is simply meant as an interesting help in finding the answers that you seek).

What I'm most interested in is what you said next, that you became a true believer on March 17th. If I'm understanding that correctly, then let me be one of the first to say, WELCOME TO THE FAMILY OF GOD (I would love to hear more about this when you have the time).

For what it's worth, it took me quite a while to finally become a Christian. I was baptized as an infant and raised in the church (so to speak), so I always "thought" that I was a Christian, even when I walked away from church and into a very fun, but sinful lifestyle in college and beyond. So, you can probably imagine my surprise on the day that I finally became one, 2 months to the day after my 30th birthday (which was more than 38 years ago, PTL).

Finally, you mentioned wanting to learn how to seek God's will for your life. I had a similar thought, my first thought as a Christian, as a matter of fact, I wanted to learn how to please Him (because when I realized how much He had just saved me from, I also realized how displeasing my life must have been to Him up until that point in time, so I never wanted to be displeasing to Him like that again). The thing I realized at that moment however was that I didn't know how, not really (which is when the Holy Spirit mentioned a single word to me, "Bible" ).

I say this because I believe that what you are seeking is principally found in the very same place that I began to discover what things are pleasing to Him (and what things are not). Remember too, that as a now adopted child of God, you have been given eternal life (e.g. John 5:24), so 1. take the time that you need to when you are sitting at His feet, learning from Him (because you really do have the time to so now, all the time that you need ), and 2. if you don't understand something as you read, take note of it and set it aside to review later (and/or bring it to the attention of your pastor .. or bring it here so that we can help you with it, as some of the Bible is difficult to completely understand, especially when you're first learning it, but there truly are answers for every question that you have, just be patient and you'll discover them ).

I look forward to talking with you further about the topic of God's will, and hearing more about the mighty work that God is doing in you even now (when time and technology allow for it) Also, I believe that a new believer's principal ministry is to grow in the knowledge and understanding of God and His word, so keep your focus there for the foreseeable future (because the more you grow in this way, the more effective and useful you will be to Him and to others in this world .. though "witnessing", telling people what you know and have experienced so far as a believer, about God and the Christian faith, is something that you can begin to do right now, of course .. because you're telling people about what you know and have experienced so far, not about what you don't know and/or have not experienced yet).

Blessings to you in Christ!!

--David
p.s. - here's a short story about this that you might enjoy, about what the Lord Jesus deemed as most important for a new believer.

Luke 10​

38 As they traveled along, Jesus entered a village where a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. ​

39 She had a sister named Mary who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to His message. ​

40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations to be made. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Then tell her to help me!” ​

41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord replied, “you are worried and upset about many things; ​

42 but only one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good part, and it will not be taken away from her.”​

.

 

[Jo555]

Hi.

This walk is not a complicated matter. God wants you to love Him with all, and neighbor as self. It is impossible of our own, but once you come into the faith, God gives you a new nature (born again), where his Spirit lives and his Spirit in you will cause your will to line with God's will and you will bear good fruit: love, joy, peace, sound mind, etc.

As far as marriage and job, etc. Overall I believe God leaves that up to us, but his Spirit in us will clue us in if we are off. Something won't feel right and it is up to us to continue to seek Him about it or ignore it.

There are also guidelines in scripture that can help you avoid grievances there.

Denying self is basically avoiding the call of the flesh to give in to its lusts. It's not just sexuality, but greed, bitterness, jealousy, etc. You will feel those things at times because although Christ frees us from the bondage of sin, it can still call to us. By his Spirit we can now turn from that. The more you grow in faith and love, the easier it will be.

If you have truly come into the faith, your salvation is secure for it is a free gift from God. You are now on a journey of being transformed from your past life into your new life in Him.

God bless you.

 

[Jo555]

Hi.

This walk is not a complicated matter. God wants you to love Him with all, and neighbor as self. It is impossible of our own, but once you come into the faith, God gives you a new nature (born again), where his Spirit lives and his Spirit in you will cause your will to line with God's will and you will bear good fruit: love, joy, peace, sound mind, etc.

As far as marriage and job, etc. Overall I believe God leaves that up to us, but his Spirit in us will clue us in if we are off. Something won't feel right and it is up to us to continue to seek Him about it or ignore it.

There are also guidelines in scripture that can help you avoid grievances there.

Denying self is basically avoiding the call of the flesh to give in to its lusts. It's not just sexuality, but greed, bitterness, jealousy, etc. You will feel those things at times because although Christ frees us from the bondage of sin, it can still call to us. By his Spirit we can now turn from that. The more you grow in faith and love, the easier it will be.

If you have truly come into the faith, your salvation is secure for it is a free gift from God. You are now on a journey of being transformed from your past life into your new life in Him.

God bless you.

Additionally, He loves when we share our lives with Him. Invite Him to share your journey with you. We often talk about following after Him, but He also wants us to share our lives with Him and invite Him to show and guide us. He will too.

Give you an example of how these things can go. I once asked the Lord if I should move to Texas. I didn't have a strong desire to go to follow through on, but my sister was there for a time and I missed her and considered following.

Shortly afterward I had a dream that I was in Texas and it was like a desert, and up ahead I saw large mountains.

Now I try not to add to whatever He shows me so I'd say it wasn't Him telling me not to go, but showing me the challenges I'd face if I did. I decided not to go. People may say it was just a dream, but I didnt believe so.

If I had a strong desire to go. I probably would continue to seek Him on it and see how He may confirm the message in the dream.

When i dated I'd pray when my heart was getting attached they'd drop, or get shipped away by their job, etc. Often they would come around again, but I was done with it by then.

He'll show you other things too. Like sometimes I blame myself if something didn't go quite as planned, and He'd show me things like the enemy trying to hinder me through fear, stuff like that. Made it easier not to be so hard on myself, and showed me where I needed work.

Invite Him along for the ride for He is more than willing.

 

[St_Worm2]

Invite Him along for the ride for He is more than willing.

Hello @Bob8102, in concert with what @Jo555 was just telling you above is the idea of practicing the presence of God in our daily lives. We are, in fact, commanded (or perhaps better, admonished) to do so by God in the Scriptures, perhaps never more explicitly or clearly than we are in the following, short passage.

1 Thessalonians 5​

16 Rejoice always; ​

17 pray without ceasing; ​

18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.​

It is a TRULY AMAZING thing, is it not, that our Creator and God, the transcendent King of the Universe, actually wants to be part of the moment by moment of our personal/daily lives (the biggest part, actually). The question is, how to go about doing so, yes, which is where the passage above comes in and is so very helpful to us.

My recommendation is to start small by, first and foremost, simply remembering Him throughout the day (as often as you can), and then by responding to Him in the ways described above. IOW, we choose to look for people/things/situations/etc. throughout the day that we can rejoice in and thank Him for (the littlest/simplest of things actually, and eventually, even things that may seem bad to us in the moment, knowing that God has promised to eventually turn all of the things that seem bad to us at the time around for our good .. e.g. Romans 8:28 cf Hebrews 12:7-11).

Pastor/theologian Charles Spurgeon spoke to this in one of his sermons when he said that, "I've learned to kiss the waves that throw me up against the Rock of Ages"

As you continue to do this (practice His presence in your daily life), your life will become more and more centered on Him, as will your sense of peace and contentment, even in the face of the difficulties that you face each day, as that comes from Him too

God bless you!!

--David
p.s. - also in concert with something that @Jo555 said earlier (in post 31, this time, particularly her last two sentences or comments in that post) are these thoughts (from a few verses later in 1 Thess 5),

1 Thessalonians 5​

23 May the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body ​

be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. ​

24 Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass. ​

 

[Bob8102]

I just listened to the two audios for which St_Worm2 sent me links, about the The Will of God. Very thought provoking. In the first, in a nutshell, it says we should not seek signs for particular decisions but should study God's Word and learn to be righteous. The second said that while a good fit between our skills, along with what we like to do, and our job description, is desirable, we should not try to determine the "hidden will of God:" we should follow the "revealed" will of God. There is more to these audios than just those two sentences I just wrote. Thanks for the links!

I have read and been inspired by your all's written responses. Remembering Him throughout the day is good advice, for sure. The Bible says, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart. In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He will direct they paths." With varying frequency and duration, I have been starting to try to do this, when I think if it. In my struggles to become a Christian and to be sure of my salvation, I have thought about the concept of "motives." The consideration of motives can be a real slayer. I once went to a Christian day conference, understanding I had just given my life to Him. At the end of the conference, somebody said something about 'living for self' vs. 'living for God.' At that moment, I realized I was living for myself and that slayed the notion I had become a Christian at the beginning of the day. I have sometimes prayed to Jesus, "The transformation of a person from one who lives for themselves, moment by moment, to one who lives for You, moment by moment, is an impossible transition. It cannot be done. And You can do it in a moment." "With men, this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." I am sticking with the conclusion that I became a Christian on St. Patrick's Day. I am pondering the moment by moment thing.

 

[St_Worm2]

I am pondering the moment by moment thing.

Hi Bob, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 helps us with finding ways to build our all-important, personal relationship w/God through prayer (I believe the ongoing idea of always rejoicing, always praying, and always giving thanks to Him are part of our prayer life with Him).

Remember that relationships take time to build with others and, likewise, they take time to build with God too, so be sure to be patient and take your time with all of this, all of the time that you need

Finally, remember that this passage is characterized by "joy", so "joy" should be an ongoing consideration as you ponder the passage and how it can best be applied to your daily life. Also, if you ever begin to feel stressed and/or anxious about any of it, that should be a sign for you to back off, come back later and try again.

Perhaps it would be best to think of all of this as a new and wonderful lifestyle change that you will begin working towards applying to your life over time (rather than as a command that needs to be perfectly and immediately implemented and obeyed .. I've been at this very thing for quite awhile now and I know that I still have a LONG way to go, and that's ok too ).

Blessing to you in Christ!!

--David
p.s. - I know that you are searching to discover God's will for your life, and this, our ongoing and growing relationship with Him (which includes growing in our knowledge and understanding of Him/His word, of course) is where we principally find it.

1 Thessalonians 5​

16 Rejoice always; ​

17 pray without ceasing; ​

18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.​