As I have frequently espoused on this blog, we already know what the will of God is for our lives; we need simply read the Scriptures. We’ve often looked at the parable of the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25 which gives a very clear, concise overview of the things we should be doing.
The Bible is a large book, so I appreciate those sections that pack so much into a small portion of the text. However, we need to be careful and not simply stop with Matthew 25. Everything we need to know is revealed in God’s Word, so we do well to constantly survey the wisdom and instruction contained within its pages.
The reason we were created is to glorify God, to live in relationship with Him, and to tell others about His love, mercy and grace. That is the “why” behind everything we do in life. Every decision and every action should be done with that purpose in mind. As He loves us, so we should love others; as He desires to live in community with us, we also should desire to live in community with one another. He sets the bar and as we follow that example we reveal His character to the world. This is His will for our lives. Where we too often go wrong is in trying to decide what God’s plan is for the particulars of our life.
God is definitely concerned about the details of your existence. The Bible tells us that He is aware of every sparrow that falls and that He provides food for the birds. The old aphorism is wrong, the devil is not in the details; God is. He cares deeply about what you are going through and the trials you face. Here’s where we often lose our bearings. We search the scriptures trying to find out what God would have us do in any given situation (which college should I attend, which job should I take, etc.). The particulars are often not in Scripture, but the principles are. If we will focus our attention on the principles and live our lives consistently with those, the particulars will either turn into easy or inconsequential choices. Suddenly the job choice will be much clearer whereas whether you eat the red Popsicle or the blue one remains inconsequential!
I’m rededicating myself to better understanding what it looks like to live a life fully committed to the will of God. I know I will spend the rest of my life attempting to come to terms with this. Here’s what I know, however: everything I need to follow Christ is written in His Word. I believe as we come to better understand who God is and the way He manifested Himself in the person of Jesus Christ, the better we will understand how to live the life we have been given. We know the “why” of our existence. It is our duty to now learn the “how”. I want to know more; I want to learn everything there is to know about our magnificent Creator. I want to fully experience all He has created me to be.
As we draw ever closer to Christ we will find our lives changing in ways we can scarcely imagine. We will begin to look like Him in our words and our actions. Others will be drawn to Him as we bring glory to God in our everyday lives. I hope you’ll join me on this journey. The destination is clear and our success is assured; the adventure is before us.
Question: Are you ready to embrace everything you were created to be? I encourage you to publicly state your commitment by leaving a comment below. It can be as simple as, “I’m in” or as verbose as you’d like it to be. Let’s join together in living to bring glory to our Lord and King.