When we are called into Christ, the main thing we want to figure out from the point we start walking with Him is what He has in store for us now. The Bible promises that when Jesus is in charge of our walk, He brings a good, perfect and pleasing will to us. But what does that will really look like?
There is no way to know completely what God's purpose is for us because if we were shown that will, I don't think it would make a lot of sense! But God can and will give a glimpse of His direction to us at a level that will help us actually walk in it. In fact, we should ask God for His light to be shed upon our path so as to be guided by it accordingly.
Psalm 119:105 likens God's word to a lamp unto our feet. The interesting thing about a lamp is that illuminates only a limited portion of our way, but it gives us enough light to know where we're going. That might sound scary at first, but always remember that as you walk with that lamp, you have a loving and powerful Shepherd in Jesus Christ to guide you through the darkest valleys.
So how can we receive that illumination of God's will in a way that we will be guided to walk in it? How do we know what career path to take, whom to walk with, what ministry to come into or what nation to be sent to? God's word—as always—guides us in the right direction. In Romans 12:2, we are instructed, "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" (ESV).
Knowing God's will calls first that we be removed from the will and pattern of this world. If there's one thing that can cloud us from God's good, pleasing and perfect will, it's this world. Whether we start seeing the will of God in others and start acting in envy and covetousness or we see the great challenges and hurdles the world sets up to stop us from God's will, this world and the sinful brokenness in it are on a mission to stop you from God's will.
I remember the days coming into my call of full-time ministry when the things of the world distracted me. I started wondering how I was going to pay bills, what people would think and whether I'd be accepted as a minister. But as I walked with Christ as my light, He started showing me the way—not always completely, but always faithfully.
As we walk away from the patterns of this world, we will notice how Jesus starts transforming our mindsets from our broken and fleshly concepts to the godly and eternal ideals of God. When we see things from the eyes of God, everything seems to explode in technicolor! We then see possibilities in the midst of impossibilities, provision in the midst of lack and life in the midst of dryness.
When we walk in God's ways instead of this world, we start to see more and more of God's good, pleasing and perfect will. We need more of God, not more of us or more of our purpose.
