{"id":7216,"date":"2020-06-22T14:46:00","date_gmt":"2020-06-22T14:46:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/?p=7216"},"modified":"2022-08-09T20:21:32","modified_gmt":"2022-08-09T20:21:32","slug":"gods-will","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/","title":{"rendered":"God, tell me your will"},"content":{"rendered":"
Most people want to know God’s plan for them<\/strong><\/h5>\n

In my coaching practice, every client asks what God’s will is for them. That’s good<\/em>! It means people sincerely want to please him.<\/p>\n

Remember that even though God KNOWS what will happen in your life, that does not mean he PLANNED it. You and those around you have a wonderful, powerful, and terrible gift called free will. God doesn’t plan<\/em> evil, but he does permit<\/em> it, with the promise that if we cooperate with him, he’ll bring greater good from it.<\/p>\n

Wanting to know God’s will also may mean one is hoping to hear an answer other than that which God has already given him. At this point in life, we should KNOW God’s basic will for us. Let me explain:<\/p>\n

1 – God made us to desire union with him and to please him; our sin nature (the “sin of the world”) seeks fulfillment of that desire in the wrong ways \/places\/persons.
\n2 – He knew we would be confused (by the world, the flesh, and the devil) so he gave us specific instructions.
\n3 – He knew we would misinterpret the instructions, so he gave us his Church to guide us.
\n4 – He knew we would not even listen to the wisdom of the Church, so he allows the pain to lead us (when we are ready) to others who can guide us.<\/p>\n

That’s me. I’m one of those who will guide you right back around to his<\/em> original instructions:<\/p>\n

God’s “master” plan for you is pretty simple<\/strong><\/h5>\n

KNOW HIM.<\/strong> Read, study, observe, and listen more. Desire to know him intimately and honestly. Pray for the grace to avoid the counterfeit “Jesus” and accept the One who may seem scarier, tougher, or less tolerant. Don’t rely on feelings.<\/p>\n

LOVE HIM.<\/strong>\u00a0 Once you know him as much as you can this side of heaven, you will not be able to resist loving him. When you begin to know how much he loves you, you will ache to love him in return and please him in every way. Do you still doubt his great goodness? Go back to KNOW and spend some there. Return to the four gospels as a start.<\/p>\n

SERVE HIM<\/strong>. This is last for a reason. Some people, out of guilt, shame, fear, or culture, may be stuck “serving” God without knowing or loving him. That’s okay for now; sometimes in these acts, the Lord will reach them. Sincere obedience even without understanding is a virtue. But service that is not slavery is the natural outpouring of love returned.\u00a0 Couples in love? They willingly rush into such “slavery”.\u00a0 It is a sweet servitude that, even when suffering comes, is also a joy.<\/p>\n

In a certain sense, being rich or poor, single or married, in ministry or not, matters far less than we believe it does. If by the world’s standards you never accomplished anything “special” but did these three well, you would be a saint. And, as my old pal, Patrick Coffin, famously asks, “What else is there?”<\/p>\n

God gave us a set of sub-plans<\/strong><\/h5>\n

For those who sometimes need more nuanced instruction, we have:\u00a0 The Ten Commandments, The Proverbs, The Beatitudes<\/em>, and more.\u00a0 Read Scripture and the Catechism (which draws deeply on God’s word) and you will not get lost. Most people struggle with the “serve him” part and insist on more specific direction. Fear, doubt, insecurity, or even laziness can keep us wondering about God’s will. Many times we are saying, “I really want this, but, God, are YOU okay with it?”<\/p>\n

Like my Dad used to do on the back of a napkin at the lunch counter, God is not going to draw it all out again; he already did. We are often just looking for some way around it. “Use the brains God gave you, Rosie,” Dad used to say. God wants you to mature and partner with him, and ultimately share in his cross.\u00a0 To that end, he gives you even more guidance and graces in three, specific gifts:<\/p>\n

Instinct<\/em> to keep you safe
\nIntuition<\/em> to hear his voice
\nIntellect<\/em> to know the way even when feelings are fickle<\/p>\n

God will show you that sign<\/strong><\/h5>\n

God delights when you exercise your free will rightly and choose what delights you!<\/em>\u00a0 That’s the kind of Father he is. Yes, miracles still happen, but most often God will give you his “sign” that you are on the right path when you can answer YES to these questions:<\/p>\n

Do I honestly desire it?<\/em> (Or is it something someone else wants me to do or have?)
\nIs it moral?<\/em> ( It can be good or neutral, just not immoral. Check Church teachings.)
\nIs it licit?<\/em> (It may not be immoral, but the law prohibits it for other good reasons. Render to Caeser.)
\nIs it hurting me in some way?<\/em> (Letting others use and abuse you is not good for you or them.)
\nIs it realistic?<\/em> (I’d love to be a ballerina but I am a short, stocky klutz.)
\nIs it within my natural talents, gifts, and strengths?<\/em> (Or will it drain me and irritate others?)
\nIs it in my budget?<\/em> (Financial irresponsibility is sinful.)
\nIs my spouse in general agreement?<\/em>\u00a0(Trust God to guide you through a wise spouse\/close friend.)
\nWill it lead me toward God . . .\u00a0 or away from him?<\/em> (Have I become too attached to the idea?)
\nWill it honor and safeguard my closest relationships?<\/em> (Abandoning your family to be a missionary is foolish.)<\/p>\n

If you replied with “Yes” on all, go for it! You will be in God’s will.<\/p>\n

With practice, this line of thinking becomes easier and, eventually, second nature. Post these on the fridge and discuss them with the kiddos! Extra points if you pay them $100 to memorize them!<\/p>\n

More on God’s Will
\n<\/strong>God Has No Plan For You<\/a><\/h5>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce for all, then, a short precept is given thee: Love, and do what thou wilt<\/strong>: whether thou hold thy peace, through love hold thy peace; whether thou cry out, through love cry out; whether thou correct, through love correct; whether thou spare, through love do thou spare: let the root of love be within, of this root can nothing spring but what is good.\u201d
\n\u2015\u00a0Augustine of Hippo, Homilies on the First Epistle of John<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":9472,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[72],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nGod, tell me your will - Rose Sweet<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Believe it or not, knowing God's will for you is NOT that difficult. He's already given you some clear plans to follow!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"God, tell me your will - Rose Sweet\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Believe it or not, knowing God's will for you is NOT that difficult. He's already given you some clear plans to follow!\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Rose Sweet\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-06-22T14:46:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-08-09T20:21:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Depositphotos_70909601_L-1024x682.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"682\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Rose Sweet\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Rose Sweet\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"God, tell me your will - Rose Sweet","description":"Believe it or not, knowing God's will for you is NOT that difficult. He's already given you some clear plans to follow!","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"God, tell me your will - Rose Sweet","og_description":"Believe it or not, knowing God's will for you is NOT that difficult. He's already given you some clear plans to follow!","og_url":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/","og_site_name":"Rose Sweet","article_published_time":"2020-06-22T14:46:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-08-09T20:21:32+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":682,"url":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Depositphotos_70909601_L-1024x682.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Rose Sweet","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Rose Sweet","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/","url":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/","name":"God, tell me your will - Rose Sweet","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Depositphotos_70909601_L.jpg","datePublished":"2020-06-22T14:46:00+00:00","dateModified":"2022-08-09T20:21:32+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/#\/schema\/person\/082fc4e6a45058bbc2295d0f0e9e7049"},"description":"Believe it or not, knowing God's will for you is NOT that difficult. He's already given you some clear plans to follow!","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Depositphotos_70909601_L.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Depositphotos_70909601_L.jpg","width":2000,"height":1333},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/gods-will\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"God, tell me your will"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/","name":"Rose Sweet","description":"Catholic Author & Coach","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/#\/schema\/person\/082fc4e6a45058bbc2295d0f0e9e7049","name":"Rose Sweet","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/537951d584a4779ade3ff12c7b445f70?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/537951d584a4779ade3ff12c7b445f70?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Rose Sweet"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/rosesweet.com"],"url":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/author\/rose\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7216"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7216"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7216\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10477,"href":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7216\/revisions\/10477"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9472"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7216"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7216"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rosesweet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7216"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}