Creator, Father, King #134

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

HAVE YOU EVER WANTED to know your future? Of course! We all have.

Humans have long desired to look past the mysterious veil that separates the present from the future and find the answer to questions like these:

• What will tomorrow look like?
• What does the distant future hold?
• What should I do with this particular decision?

In the ancient world, pagans would go to extreme measures to answer these questions, even examining the entrails (liver, intestines, lungs) of sacrificed animals in search of omens about the future—a practice known as extispicy. Ewwww!

Christians aren’t immune to this desire to know the future. From a biblical perspective, all believers should want to know God’s will for their lives. But as we discussed in yesterday’s devotion, not all of it has been revealed to us. In our desire to know God’s will, we must seek wisely and reverently.

Now we turn to the burning question every Christian wants to know: How can I know God’s will for my life?

What’s It Mean?

Knowing God’s will is not like baking brownies: Follow these ten easy steps, and voilà! Done in thirty minutes!

God’s will doesn’t work like that.

Knowing God’s will is a spiritual process that involves obedience to his Word, prayer, and patient faith. The first step is a spiritual renewal of your mind (today’s verse). Without God’s justifying and sanctifying work in your life, you can’t know his will.

Sometimes God makes his will immediately clear to his children in specific situations. But if you’re waiting for him to appear to you in a burning bush, you’re probably going to be disappointed. God certainly can (and still does) speak in miraculous ways, but nowadays, he primarily communicates through his inspired Word. (This, by the way, is far better than one-time visions—see 1 Peter 1:10-12.)

Above all, God’s will for you is to bring glory to his name with the spiritual gifts that he has given you (1 Corinthians 10:31). He desires that you become more like his Son (Romans 8:29) and make disciples of others (Matthew 28:19-20).

He will reveal other parts of his will to you as you faithfully walk in his ways, read his Word, seek him in prayer, and seek the counsel of godly believers in your life.

Now What?

Read 1 John 2:17 to learn more about God’s will.

Did You Know?

God repeatedly condemned extispicy, often called divination, in the Old Testament.