HopeLives365

Mark Finley: God's not the God of the shut door, he's the God of the open door. When you're going to make a decision, pray about it. When you're going to make a decision, ask yourself, "Am I willing to be in total surrender to Jesus Christ? Am I willing to give up my will for God's will?"

Guest (Male): This is HopeLives365 with Pastor Mark Finley. Today's message: Discovering God's Will. Enjoy and remember you can always catch up with past messages and stay up to date with HopeLives365 and Pastor Mark by going to HopeLives365.com. And now, Pastor Mark Finley.

Mark Finley: I've spent a good portion of my ministry in New England. I was an evangelist for three states—Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. We traveled in those states holding evangelistic meetings, sometimes in churches and many times in large auditoriums. It was wonderful to hold meetings in the summertime, in the spring or fall, but New England winters can be pretty difficult. Yet, we held our meetings pretty much year-round.

I remember on one occasion, we were holding meetings in Worcester, Massachusetts. We were toward the end of our meetings when I was going to make some pretty serious appeals for people to come to Christ, follow Jesus, and be baptized. When I looked out the window, I saw that the ominous dark storm clouds were filling the sky. It was obvious that we were in for a typical New England winter blizzard. All the weather reports indicated that we'd have close to 18 inches of snow.

This fact greatly troubled me. We were in the midst of our meetings, and I didn't want to cancel that night. I had no way of letting the people know that we were not going to have a meeting even if we did cancel, and I knew a few people would come. I was ready to make a powerful appeal for Christ, and I couldn't possibly understand that it would be God's will for it to snow that night. I was to preach on the truth of God's Word and lead people to Jesus.

So confidently, I announced to my staff—I was much younger in those days and I thought I knew what God wanted in every instance—I said to my staff, a little bit proudly, "I believe God can hold back this snow until after the meeting." At 11:00 in the morning, we began to pray. At around 12:00 noon, it began to snow. All through the afternoon we prayed, and all through the afternoon it snowed. It seemed the more we prayed, the more it snowed.

Although we still conducted our meeting that night, there were only a handful of people there in a large auditorium. They just kind of rattled around in the auditorium with very meager attendance. After the meeting, we gathered our disappointed staff together, and I had to confess to them. I said, "You know, tonight I thought we were praying in God's will. I thought he'd hold back the snow. I might have even thought that we were wiser than God in telling him what to do."

But he is the Lord of the meetings, and he's the Lord of the snow. If he wants it to snow for his meeting, that's up to him. We need to acknowledge his lordship, surrender to his will, and leave our meetings in his hands. Since the Friday night meeting was so poorly attended, when we had our meeting on Saturday night, which was regularly attended, I announced that we would have a special meeting on Sunday night.

As we came to the meeting on Sunday night, the sun was shining with blue skies that day. The night was clear, and it was a beautiful Sunday evening—a little crisp, but beautiful. Now, normally on Sundays, we didn't have meetings, but we added this special meeting. At the conclusion of the Sunday night meeting, I extended an invitation for those who may have been holding back but wanted to give their lives fully to Christ and be baptized.

Among others, a young business professional came forward. His wife was a committed Christian, but he never had made a full commitment to Jesus. His comments after the meeting shocked me. He said, "Thank you for scheduling this extra meeting tonight because I was out of town on Friday night and I couldn't have attended the meeting even if I wanted to."

I thought to myself, "God, you cared for this individual so much you allowed the snow to fall so that we would have an extra meeting on Sunday night." All of a sudden, it struck me: Lord, you're supreme. You know what you're doing. You see, God doesn't always make it that plain. Discovering God's will can only occur if you're willing to surrender to it. It can only occur if you accept his lordship.

There are times that it's necessary to trust his guidance when his will is not as clear. When the future looks dark, when we wonder, "God, what's going on here?" one thing is certain: if you desire to stubbornly follow your own will, God will ultimately let you do it. But if you desire to know his will, he'll reveal it.

Discovering God's will starts with a basic premise. Here's the premise: God wants to reveal his will to you. He longs to guide us into life's greatest joys. He knows how to fill the longings of our hearts better than we do ourselves. Throughout Scripture, there are multiple promises of God's guidance.

For example, Psalm 32:8, God says to David and he says it to you and me: "I will instruct you and teach you in the way that you should go; I will guide you with mine eye." What assurance! Take, for example, Proverbs chapter 16. We look there at verse 7. The Scripture says, "When a man's ways please the Lord, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him." When we please the Lord, even those trying to do harm to us, God guides us to make the right and proper decisions.

Or look, for example, at Isaiah 58:11, where God says, "The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought." What did it say in Psalm 32 verse 8? It says, "I'll instruct you, I'll teach you in the way that you should go." What does it say in Isaiah 58 verse 11? "I'll guide you continually." When we consecrate ourselves to God in the morning, when we surrender our plans to him to be given up or carried out as his providence shall indicate, he will guide us.

Well, you say, "Pastor Mark, it all sounds so nice, but how do you really know whether you are simply doing what you want to do and then declaring it's the will of God, or whether you're really genuinely following God's will? How can you practically discover God's will?" God reveals his will to us in a variety of ways. His Spirit is creative and sometimes surprises us in the way he deeply indicates his will. Yet, there are at least five ways that God often chooses to make his will plain.

There are some basic principles which guide us in discovering God's will. Let's look at those ways. First, prayer. The Bible says in James chapter 1 verse 5, if I want to know God's will, I must seek God's will. I must ask God to reveal his will to me. The Scripture puts it this way: "If any of you lacks wisdom"—that's if you don't know what to do or what decision to make—"let him ask of God, who gives to all men liberally."

God is a liberal giver. He liberally gives us what? Wisdom. And it will be given to him. So if you lack wisdom, ask of God. He gives liberally, and it indeed will be given. You remember in Luke chapter 11, the Bible tells us how God wants to give us good gifts. If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those that ask?

So if you want to know God's will, ask God for it. God is not going to come and knock you on top of the head and say, "This is the way to go, go that way." But if you open your heart to God and examine your motives, are you willing to give up the thing you really want for Christ's sake if it becomes clear that that's his will? Seek God. Ask him to reveal his will.

But you might say, "How do I know the difference between impulse and impression? What's the difference between a human impulse and a divine impression? Let's suppose I'm praying and I feel a certain impression that I should do something. How do I know if that impression comes from God? How do I know if it's not only my impulsive desire?"

Human impulse is flighty. It comes today and it's gone tomorrow. But a divine impression is a growing, constant awareness that God wants me to do this. How can I distinguish the difference between what I want and what God wants? How can I distinguish the difference between the voice of God and my own feelings? Here's the way you distinguish it: as you pray, surrender your will to God. Tell God that you are willing to give up the thing that you want the most.

If you are not willing to give up the thing you might want most, God may let you have the thing you want most, and that may not be his will and it may lead you to disaster. Often I have young people come to me for counsel. Here's a young woman who's dating a non-Christian. She says, "Pastor Mark, I just love this guy. I have such feelings for him, and I've just been praying and I think God wants me to marry him."

I ask, "Is he a committed Christian?" "Oh no, Pastor." "Does he go to church with you?" "No, Pastor." "Do you ever pray with him?" "No, Pastor." "Do you read the Bible?" "No, Pastor. But I love him so much, Pastor. I really love him. I think this is the one. I can convert him, Pastor."

Two things. One is this: the Bible says, "Can two walk together except they be agreed?" And the way, young lady, you will know God's will is this: if you are willing to give up the thing you want most and surrender the relationship that you have with that young man. If you're willing to surrender that relationship for Christ's sake, God will reveal it to you. He may have somebody else for you that you cannot even dream of right now. So as we pray, the first aspect of getting guidance from God is we pray, we seek God in prayer, and we examine our motives. We ask, "Are we willing to give up the thing we want most? Is the greatest joy of my life to please God and to give glory to him?" Human impulse is flighty; it's here today and gone tomorrow. But a divine impression is a growing, constant awareness that God wants us to do something.

Guest (Male): We'll be right back with Pastor Mark Finley. We thank you for listening and hope you're enjoying today's message. Our mission is to attractively present the Christ-centered biblical truths of Scripture in a practical, relevant way to people around the world so that they may experience the abundant life that Christ offers and effectively share with confidence his life-changing truths with others. You can support this ministry and help us reach even more by going to HopeLives365.com/donate. And now, back to Pastor Mark Finley.

Mark Finley: Now the second principle of guidance is God directs us directly sometimes through Scripture. There are times that the Bible gives us direction. As we study the Word of God, we will know for sure. I remember on one specific occasion, I was with a group of young men, and these young men decided that what they wanted to do was to rob a food delivery truck that was just across the street delivering food to a grocery store.

We were at a YMCA playing basketball. We finished the basketball game and we were hungry. We sat there in the parlor of the Y looking out the window, and would you imagine it? A grocery truck drove up, and it was filled with pies. In New England, they were called Table Talk Pies. They were delicious—apple pies, blueberry pies, pumpkin pies. The man opened the back of the truck and there were these pies, freshly baked. He took some pies—it was a fairly safe area, a little town—and he brought them into the store.

My friends said, "Let's go! Let's go get a pie! We can just take one out of the back of the truck. He won't know, and we can all eat it. Maybe we'll take two." Now let me ask you this: is there a commandment that says "Thou shalt not steal"? Did I have to get on my knees and say, "Lord, I'm so hungry. Lord, I can even smell those pies from across the street. They smell so good. Now, Lord, is it your will for me to go get apple pie?"

I didn't have to do that, did I? Because I just had become a committed Christian, I said to my friends, "That's not something I can do. I can't go rob that truck." Look, there are times that God's Word clearly reveals his will. You don't have to pray over whether God wants you to look at pornography or not. It's not in harmony with God's will; it's sinful. You don't have to pray whether God wants you to date a young man or young lady who does not have Christian ideals. You don't have to pray about that.

What you have to pray is that God will give you the courage not to do it. So there are things that are openly contrary to the Word of God, and when they are, that is God speaking to us. God speaks to us through his Word. The Bible says in John 17:17, "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth." God's will never leads us contrary to God's Word. God's grace never leads us to disobey God's commandments.

So when you read the commandments of God, they become the foundation of life. We don't keep the commandments in order to be saved; we keep the commandments because we are saved. Apple trees do not produce apples in order to become apple trees; they produce apples because they are apple trees. When our roots are deep in Christ, we produce the fruits of the Spirit in our lives and we become obedient to God's Word. Anything that leads us to be disobedient to God's Word and contrary to God's law, we say, "Lord, no, this cannot be your will." This can be Satan enticing me, but it certainly is not your will.

So how do we know God's will? First, by prayer. Secondly, by saturating our mind with the Bible. Thirdly, there are times that we need to know God's will and maybe there's not clear instruction in the Bible. For example, we've prayed about something, and let me give you an example: the Bible doesn't tell me that I should leave this city and get a new job in another city. It doesn't tell me, "Hey, sell this house and purchase another house." It may give me some principles, but it doesn't explicitly say.

There are times that here you have two Christians that are dating—a Christian young man and a Christian young woman. They're unmarried, they're college students, they're thinking about getting married. The Bible doesn't say explicitly yes or no. So then, when you're praying about something and you're not sure, when the Bible doesn't give you explicit answers, where then do you find guidance?

The Bible helps us. It's found in Proverbs chapter 15 verse 22. This is the third aspect of guidance. The Scripture says it this way: "Without counsel our plans go awry, but in the multitude of counselors there is safety." So choose a few spiritually minded counselors and seek their guidance. It might be a pastor, a teacher, a parent, or a friend. But don't be afraid to go to other people and say, "Look, I've been praying about this, I'm uncertain." And you go to a godly counselor.

I remember there was a time in my life when I had just become a Christian and I was struggling with a decision. The decision had to do with a certain trip that our basketball team was to go on. Staying in hotels, eating in restaurants, but I would have had to go on that trip and neglect the worship of God because it was on a weekend. For me personally, I had just accepted God's truth of the Bible Sabbath, and it would have caused me to violate my conscience.

But boy, did I want to go on that trip. I was brought up in Norwich, Connecticut, and very rarely in our family could we eat in a restaurant. We didn't have that kind of money. And if we ever did, my parents would say, "No drinks or no dessert, just get the main meal." And staying in a hotel? I mean, I can't remember in my early days whether I ever stayed in a hotel or not, but I thought, "My, this is my chance! I'm playing basketball for the YMCA team, we're playing for the New England Championship, and I'm going to travel and stay in a hotel."

But then, all of a sudden, I had just become a committed Christian. I had just begun to understand the significance of the Sabbath. And I said, "Lord, what should I do?" And I was so conflicted. I remember being in my high school corridor—I was a senior in high school at the time—and I didn't have any cell phone. I had some change in my pocket and went to the phone booth and called a lady by the name of Mrs. Francis Perisi. She was a woman of God, an old Italian woman that I had met at church.

I said, "You know, Sister Perisi, what should I do? I'm conflicted in this, and I really want to go. Don't you think the Lord would be okay just this one time?" And she said to me, "Young man, what would Jesus do? You may go and have fun, but can you live with your conscience if you violate the will of God and you choose what you want to do above what God wanted to do?"

I will tell you, my conscience smote me. I had to call my team and say, "You know, I just can't go." It was one of the best decisions I ever made because once you start compromising your integrity, it leads you on the road down. You keep compromising.

So look at Proverbs 19:27. Here's some people we should not seek for counsel. The Scripture says, "There are many plans in a man's heart, nevertheless the Lord's counsel will stand." So just to counsel myself and look at my own plans, God's counsel is going to stand. But here's the text I really wanted, verse 27: "Cease listening to instruction, my son, of those who will cause you to stray from the words of knowledge." In other words, if a person's going to lead me from the words of knowledge, don't listen to their instruction. Beware of those that lead you from truth.

So here are three ways that we can find God's will: one, we pray and sometimes God's going to give us deep convictions. Secondly, study the Word of God and say, "Is there anything in the Bible that guides me in this decision?" Thirdly, we seek out wise, godly counselors—a pastor, a teacher, a parent, a friend, somebody that knows Jesus. We don't make our decisions based on what they tell us necessarily, but their counsel guides us so that we can be more open to the Spirit.

Fourthly, we look for the providence of God. We watch for God's providence. What's God's providence? God opening or shutting doors. You can't walk through any door that God does not open. You look for the providence of God. You watch for God's providence. You say, "God, what are you doing around me? What doors are you opening around me?" If God shuts the door—remember the Apostle Paul had that experience. He thought he was following God's will, and God shut one door, then God shut another door, then God shut another door. Paul was mystified until God finally opened a door for him.

Let me read it to you, Acts chapter 16. When they had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia. "God, what do you mean?" Paul must have been thinking, "I want to go preach in Asia." But God shuts the door. Boom, can't go there. Providence of God doesn't open the door. So Paul says, "I know what I'm going to do, I'm going to go to Bithynia." Verse 7: they had come to Mysia and they tried to go to Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them.

If you were Paul, how would you have felt? Door shut in Asia, door shut in Bithynia. So they come down to Troas, and a vision appears to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stands and says, "Come over to help us." And after he saw the vision, immediately we went to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them.

God shut two doors. He shut a door in Asia and shut a door in Bithynia because Europe needed the gospel. And so Paul then sees the door open, a providential, miraculous door open. God is not the God of the shut door; he's the God of the open door. When you're going to make a decision, pray about it. When you're going to make a decision, ask yourself, "Am I willing to be in total surrender to Jesus Christ? Am I willing to give up my will for God's will?" Saturate your mind with the Bible. Is there something in the Bible that guides you in your decision? Counsel with other godly people. In the multitude of counselors, there's wisdom.

Guest (Male): You've been listening to HopeLives365 with Pastor Mark Finley. We hope you've enjoyed today's message and remind you that you can find more in our many ministry resources at HopeLives365.com. And you can support this ministry by going to HopeLives365.com/donate. And now, a final thought from Pastor Mark.

Mark Finley: All decisions may not be as clear as we wish, but if our motive is God's glory, he promises to guide us. All decisions may not be clear, but once my life is surrendered to God for his glory, it is certain that he will guide me. You were created for a high purpose. You can run through life looking for pleasure, vainly attempting to make yourself happy, or you can simply say, "God, you know how to manage my life. I desire to make you my Lord and do your will in every decision in life."

Let's pray together. Father in heaven, there's somebody listening to this broadcast that is seeking to do your will right now. Help them to be willing to surrender their will to do your will, like Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane who prayed, "Lord, not my will, but thy will be done." May the motto of our life, may the desire of our heart be to do your will now and forever, because we know that your will is best for us. In Jesus' name, amen.