So many people are stressed out about finding the will of God for their lives. It is like this deep mathematical problem to solve that seems overwhelming and causes unbearable anxiety.

Many are wondering what college to go to or whether to go to college, what major to have, what career to go for, if their future spouse is out there, where to live, what job to take, and on it goes. These are important questions, but let me take the pressure off. You might be thinking, how could I take the pressure off these significant areas of life. Let’s go on a journey to the heart of God.

TIP: This is a long blog. Take your time. Use it as a Bible study to put you on the road to discovering God’s will for your life. I have included at the end questions centered around your future career and spouse.

Let me show you an image summarizing the rest of this blog, so you can see where we are going on the road to finding the will of God for your life. 

START HERE: God is a Good Father!

Before I share what the Bible says about the will of God for your life take a look at these principles. These are the first things you need to know about pursuing God’s purpose for you.

First, it is good to pursue your purpose in life. As a follower of Jesus desiring to know the will of God for your life shows your heart in desiring to please Him. Jesus wants you to draw close to Him and stay close to him your whole life making good decisions. This is good.

Second, the will of God is much bigger and wider than you might have thought. I have heard for years high schoolers, college students, and young adults talk about the will of God like they think they will miss it, it is hidden from them, or a mathematical problem to solve. This is just not true if you are intentionally pursuing Jesus. The will of God is not a tiny pen point that is hard to see. If you are pursuing Jesus, you are not going to disappoint your Father in heaven missing his will. Because our Father is loving, graceful and good, he gives his followers a wide road to live and travel on. The will of God is like a superhighway with ten or more lanes of traffic. God just sets up Biblical boundaries (guardrails) to live within so we don’t get ourselves in trouble. If you are a follower of Jesus and are proactively following after him, you can’t miss his will for your life. Read that again. I pray it sets you free! 

Doing your best to grow in your relationship with Jesus is all you need to do and God will reveal the rest over time. Rest. Relax in his goodness. Discover who God’s made you to be and live the abundant life in Christ. The rest is gravy, as they say.

Third, it takes a lifetime to pursue the will of God and keep growing closer to Him. It is not something you land on in a day or month, discover and are finished in one moment. We need to continue to pursue God and he will reveal things over time. 

Now, with those principles in place, there is a General Will of God and a Specific Will of God for lives throughout the Bible. Take your time reading these verses, meditating on them, and resting in them. Use them as a Bible Study. Take notes. Pray. See what God reveals, but rest knowing you are not going to miss something glorious.

In Part 1 of this blog series, we’ll focus on the General Will of God. In Part 2, we’ll look at the Specific Will of God. Then, in Part 3, we’ll tackle the BIG TWO questions regarding God’s will: Career and Marriage. I’ll give you specific questions to consider for each of those areas.

GENERAL WILL OF GOD

1. Pursue reading and studying the Bible (God’s Law) to know God’s will. By reading this blog, I am guessing you desire to do God’s will. Good for you.
“I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart” (Psalm 40:8).

2. Pursue the will of God with humility. Be a life-long learner.
“Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground” (Psalm 143:10).

3. The values of the Kingdom of God are connected to God’s will (Read all of Matthew 5-7 to see all of Jesus’ Kingdom values).
“…your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10).

4. Pursuing God with your whole life is doing the will of God. Jesus modeled this for us in the Garden of Gethsemane.
“Going a little further, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:39).

5. Doing the will of God is following Jesus on a journey discerning what is best.
“If anyone chooses to do God’s will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. He who speaks on his own does so to gain honor for himself, but he who works for the honor of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him. Has not Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?” (John 7:17-19).

6. The will of God can be a synonym for the Word of God (or the Bible).
“Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God” (Acts 20:25-27).

7. We can understand God’s will or his instructions and live in them.
“Be very careful, then, how you live–not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:15-20).

8. Being in God’s will means living a holy, pure, and set apart life for him, because we know Jesus.
“It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God; and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him. The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you. For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit” (1 Thessalonians 4:3-8).

9. Rejoicing because of what Jesus has done for us, Praying and Giving Thanks is God’s will.
“…give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:18).

10. Because we are saved and are pursuing Jesus, we can talk to God and he cares for us.
“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us–whatever we ask–we know that we have what we asked of him” (1 John 5:13-15).

11. God created the world by His will.
“You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being” (Revelation 4:11).

12. God instructs and counsels toward his will if we are listening.
“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you. Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you” (Psalm 32:8-9).

13. Doing the will of God involves serving others.
“…whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant” (Mark 10:43).

14. The will of God is all about loving God and loving others.
“Jesus replied: “’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments” (Matthew 22:37-40).

Bottom Line: God wants to help you follow after Jesus with wholehearted devotion. This is his general will for you. Simple right?

In Part 2 of this blog series on the will of God, we’ll look at the Specific Will of God.