By Not Known
A devotional calendar page reads – God’s will for my life is not a neat box on the path, but the path itself – a pilgrimage to be discovered by trust and obedience. Simple words, yet words that resonate both human potential and pain.
Worthy art Thou, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for Thou did create all things, and because of Thy will they existed, and were created. (Rev 4:11-NASB) A machine is designed and programmed by engineers to carry out certain tasks for its end-users. When its technological life or economic benefit is spent, it is cast aside like scraps. Not so with human beings as the Bible reminds us that we are born of God’s creative power and purpose for himself. We are not as though constructed by limited human ingenuity and sold for temporal uses, only to be discarded later on. God intends our vocation to span eternity and so made us good enough for that sole calling to worship and glorify him. Imagine just what all these imply about human potential as creatures of the eternal and almighty God.
Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails. (Prv 19:21) Human’s immense potential is also the reason for his own pain – straying away from God and straining to be great in his own eyes. Putting it modestly, we find ourselves asking a common question time and again – “I want to know God’s will for my life…?” Then we hear a voice echoing within the hollow of our hearts – “…because I am tired of being aimless, of a lousy life, of being who I don’t want to be, of not becoming who I wish to be…” Many sincere people have searched but to the vanity of their illusions. Yes, we all look for our ‘neat box’ in life hoping for a no-frills strategy to greater self-worth, meaning and success. But God never intend it to be that way.
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. (Eph 2:10 -NASB) A thread for a needle, a nut for a screw, a key for a lock, and a bulb for a lamp; so it is with human beings who are made in the image and likeness of God and brought to life with his breath. We are not made by accident that God should wonder what to do with us. Far be that so! God does have a plan for each of us even as he creates. This means that we should not try to reinvent life for ourselves. Rather, life is a journey of discovering and walking in God’s desires for us – some uniquely ours, some common to all. In a fundamental sense, knowing God’s will is not about fitting God into our perfectly crafted life plans, but a conscious surrendering of ourselves to his plan.
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. (Prv 3:5,6)