How can I know the will of God?

There is a common saying among Christians, 'How can I know the will of God?' They say it as if it is impossible to know what is His will for their lives, and their whole lives is spent wondering if they are doing His will for their lives.

Here's the thing, we can know the will of God and it is clearly mentioned in the bible. Many of us are so caught up in the specifics that we forget the will of God mentioned in the bible. We much rather hear a word, 'become an engineer, doctor, lawyer etc' or 'do this, do that' rather than to be actually content with the words already mentioned in the bible for us to do. Many of us do not even follow the commandments mentioned in the bible regarding the will of God and expect to hear the specifics.

It is God's will that we should be sanctified, to live holy lives and to abstain from sexual immorality (1 Thess 4:3). We are also told to rejoice always, pray continually and give thanks in all things, for this is God's will for us in Christ Jesus (1 Thess 5:16-18). We are told to trust in the Lord and not lean on our own understanding and let Him guide our paths (Proverbs 3:5-6). We are also told to go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19-20). We are called to 'do justly, love mercy and walk humbly before God' (Micah 6:8) and to 'fear God and obey His commands, for this is the duty of men (Ecclesiastes 12:13). How many of us are actually fulfilling God's will written in His very word for our lives and yet still ask the question, 'How can I know the will of God'?

I suspect that even if even if one does not hear a specific word to enter a specific job, marry a specific person or pursue a specific study, if that person follows and abides by the written word of God that person will be alright. Obedience is more important than sacrifice and ultimately that is what we are after, to follow and obey His perfect leadership over our lives. Instead of mulling over what we want Him to say to us so that we can work ourselves up to doing something we think or feel is from Him, how about reading His word and following that first?

Japheth Chew