How Do I Determine God’s Will for My Life?

Posted on by goldenlifemusings

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Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you. Romans 12:2

Have you ever asked yourself the question, how do I determine God’s will for my life? Have you ever just made so many mistakes or perceived wrong turns that you just had to stop yourself and say “Ok God, I give up. What am I doing wrong here?” I know I have.

But then, this scripture changed my life.

I’ve been drawn to God for as long as I can remember. I’d like to call myself a spiritual person. That is, curious about God enough to seek Him out, study Him and have a relationship with Him. But it took me having to go though a little bit of life first before I actually “walked with Him.”

What does “walking with Him” look like, you might ask. For me, it wasn’t just about going to church and being satisfied with hearing the word presented to me by someone else – even though that was certainly helpful to my spiritual growth. My real walk began when I started to actually have quiet time dedicated to reading the word for myself, talking to God, actually sitting still and listening for Him to speak back to me, and journaling. That’s when I felt a real connection, and things started to shift for me.

Several years into my walk, I stumbled across this scripture. I had read it before, I’m certain, because I had read the Bible front to back before. But I didn’t really explore it and dissect it and understand it until I really searched for this understanding of God’s will for my life.

And there it was. Staring me in the face. Slowly but surely over time, as I strengthened my walk with Him, as I started to not just listen to and seek understanding from God, I started to be obedient – I began to change into a new person. I started to think differently, speak differently, walk differently. I started to make wiser decisions. As the scripture states, I was being transformed. In the midst of my transformation, I found access to determining God’s will for my life.

Now before you look at me sideways for thinking that I am claiming to be some type of prophetess, let me explain to you what I understand is knowing God’s will for one’s life.

God has given us some pretty clear instructions on how to live in the Bible. However, one big challenge for us is that we often pick and choose what we’d like to be obedient to based off of our limited understanding of a boundary He has set. In other cases, it may be an unwillingness to do or not do something that requires self-control or discipline.

However, when we start to study the Bible and internalize the words and truly live those words out, we start to operate in a way that constantly asks the question, “what would God want me to do here?” And you know what happens after that? The path starts to become clear. We start to think and walk and talk like Him. With each step that we take towards obedience, the more our minds are renewed, and the clearer the path becomes.

Now can I see all the way through to the end of my story, or even answer questions like who will I marry or how long do I have here on Earth? No, but that’s not the point of this gift either. The point is, if you want to know how to live and determine what God wants for you, you just need to first believe that He knows the way and will show you, and allow Him to constantly transform you into the person He is shaping you to be. In that renewing of your mind, there you will find His will. There you will find the firm footing of His plans for you.  In following His instructions, He will indeed show you the way forward.

Learn more about my personal testimony in discovering God’s will for my life in my newest book, God Doesn’t Make Mistakes at www.ourmistakeshisplans.com.

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Let Me Tell You A Story

Posted on by goldenlifemusings

This week I participated in a podcast with my pastor Keith A. Battle and two other talented authors about the process of writing a book. One of the great conclusions of the podcast was that everyone has a story. In fact, we agreed that there is at least one book inside all of us.

Everyone loves a good story. That’s what I told myself when I sat down to write the first version of my new book God Doesn’t Make Mistakes. It was a fictional story about a dozen or so people who did not know one another but were somehow connected. And then 2015 and 2016 happened. It was quite a season of turmoil and transformation for me, and my journal reflected that. It was upon the review of those journal entries from that season that I realized the story I needed to tell was my own.

My story was filled with insights around struggling with purpose, being single and sexually abstinent, surviving as a full-time entrepreneur with a fledgling business, anxiety around the future, forgiveness, heartbreak, waiting. Any of these struggles sound familiar?

Sure, made up stories are entertaining, but there’s nothing like the juiciness and depth of a story that is well…real. You know how people say truth is sometimes stranger than fiction? True story.

Going back to my book…God spoke. He told me to use and write my story, so I was obedient. In God Doesn’t Make Mistakes, I actually publish ten of my journal entries from that season. Yes, journal entries that I wrote during a period of time that I felt the most lost, vulnerable, hurt, disappointed, and uncertain. Needless to say, it’s pretty transparent. But that’s what makes a good story right?

Except I don’t just tell a story. I really break down exactly what I was thinking at the time and use biblical principles to frame the lessons I learned. I’ll give you another cliché statement that is still an undeniable fact. Hindsight is always 20/20. The blessing of journal writing is that you get to look back at what you lived through, in your own words, and apply wisdom to it. That’s what I did here. Even though this book reveals things about myself that I never thought I would share publicly, I knew it was too good to keep to myself.

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Today, I share with you God Doesn’t Make Mistakes: Learning How Our Missteps Fit Into His Perfect Plan. It’s a story about how a time of turmoil and transformation in my life taught me how to trust God. More importantly, it taught me how to trust that His plans are much bigger than my mistakes. What a refreshing and comforting revelation! I pray the comfort and joy that I received as a result of that revelation extends to you as well as you read my book.

Like any good story it has lots of conflict, plenty of drama and some humor to balance it out. And even though our stories are different, I know there will be plenty of areas where you can relate and share in the “aha moments.”  If nothing else happens, perhaps after hearing my story you’ll have the courage and confidence to tell your story, because I hope you do know that there is one inside of you too.

To purchase an autographed copy of God Doesn’t Make Mistakes visit www.ourmistakeshisplans.com. If you are an Amazon or Barnes & Noble lover or you’d like to purchase the e-book, it’s available on those platforms as well. I look forward to hearing your experience with it!

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