Saboteurs of the Will of God for Your Life, Part 1
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Wow. The fact the most creative Being in the universe has personally designed a plan for ME is toupee-fluttering thought (not that I have a toupee), and of raises every bit of curiosity and caution that it should.
Shudder to think I might miss it somehow.
Yet so many of us are struggling with a nagging sense that we are somewhere south of Center of God’s perfect will for us. And let me be quite frank. There are few aspects of the Christian life that are under greater direct attack than the purposeful strategic use of us for the Kingdom, a.k.a. “the Will of God.”
Here are the first four of eight common “saboteurs” of the will of God in one’s life:
1. Misguided “Should’s”.
The business man quits his multi-million dollar business to go into vocational ministry, because he thinks full-time ministry is more spiritual than business, so it must be God’s will. And after all, he’s *willing* to actually make the leap. So he makes the leap—right out of God’s will and into a mess, all due to a misguided “should.”
Satan operates both as an accuser AND an angel of light. So, often he is able to find us in the middle of God’s will yet accuse us of being unspiritual, because “if you were really loved God, you would _____________.” (Fill in the blank: be a missionary, go to seminary, etc.) So we go, leaving what God really wants us to do in an attempt to do something “more spiritual” and jump right outside the boundary of God’s will for us.
Too much of preaching and teaching in Christendom over-spiritualizes certain vocations and in doing so undervalues others. That’s an unbiblical distinction.
The call of God on the businessman is different than the call of God on the preacher. It’s not LESS SPIRITUAL, it’s just different. They’re serving two DIFFERENT PURPOSES in the SAME KINGDOM.
For instance, I know a businessman who would be far more effective regarding a mission trip by funding eight men to go who couldn’t otherwise afford it instead of going himself because someone guilted him into it. Or better yet, by funding a permanent mission in the same field his impact could increase dramatically — all by using the gifts God has given him in the appropriate ways in the Kingdom. But in following misguided “shoulds” he could miss all that.
2. Ignorance
Some people don’t walk in God’s will because they simply don’t know what it is or what it looks like. I’m not saying God’s playing hide-and-seek with it. He’s not. I’m saying that often His revealed will – the Word of God – is not known or understood. In the Old Testament, one of the reasons the people of God strayed was because there was no teaching priests. The Word was not being regularly made plain.
Today, we have God’s road map, but we don’t know it. Biblical illiteracy is killing us more than ever. When the Scriptures are not viewed as the Ultimate Revelation of God’s mind for us, we’re left to feelings, impressions and other subjective whims as guides. And usually choices we make based on these are not congruent with God’s plan.
I remember in my college preaching class there was a girl. She said God had called her to be not just a preacher, but a pastor. Not only did she believe that, she had secured her first church pastorate before we had even graduated college. She was completely out of God’s will. I can say that with conviction because the Word of God has already laid down that the pastorate is reserved for qualified males only. This young lady wasn’t being rebellious; she was immersed in a denomination that skipped certain passages and regularly taught that the pastorate was now open to women as well as men in the New Testament Church. Whatever WAS the will of God for her was either being highly compromised or missed altogether because she was ignorant of this basic principle regarding gender roles and church offices.
I’ve often said that we won’t know and understand God’s SPECIFIC will for us if we are ignorant of God’s GENERAL revealed will – revealed in the Word of God. Do not be ignorant of what God’s will is or, at least, what it looks like. Scripture is the starting point for our education in that.
3. Toxic Religion
I borrowed this term from Christian psychologist Stephen Arterburn, but I did so because it’s loaded. Be wary of churches and/or ministries that seem to imply that you can’t hear from God yourself. They are toxic. If in your church a “word” from God for you is not a Word from God for you unless it’s given through a particular few of that church, then you need to find another church, because in that case I’ll guarantee that you’re in danger of missing God’s will the longer you stay there.
Sooner or later, what God is telling you to won’t fly with the leadership or the “spiritual” or the “prophetic” few and you’ll make a choice, and if it’s not their choice, there will be a fight to ensue and you’ll probably end up leaving anyway. I despise church systems run by control-freak leadership because of this very reason: it robs people of enjoying the fullness and uniqueness of God’s perfect will for them and the joy of discovering it for themselves.
Did you know that you can keep a box of crabs in a box with no lid? Yep. Every time one tries to crawl out, the other crabs will keep pulling him back in. If that picture resembles your church, find another one. I guarantee that the will of God for you will be somewhere outside that box—and when you discover it, truly godly people won’t squelch it or invalidate it, they’ll celebrate it.
4. Toxic Relationships
Our values and choices often reflect the people in our life. Bad company corrupts good character. As grandpa put it, “Lay down with dogs and you’re going to get fleas.” In the business world we often hear that “successful people surround themselves with successful people.” If we listen to the wrong people, we can take a wrong direction—away from the will of God.
We see this most often in dating and marriage. I often tell singles, if you date outside of God’s will, you’ll marry outside God’s will because we usually end up marrying one of those people we dated.
Getting bad advice falls under this toxic relationship category. Some people in your life may just be giving you well-intended but nonetheless BAD advice. Make sure that the people who advise you themselves operate within the realm of biblical principle.
Let me be clear, I’m not saying that the people who are toxic INTEND to be toxic. They may even claim—and sincerely so—to want the best for you. But YOU know if they want GOD’S best and YOU know if they are people that God is using in your life to spur you on in godliness. If they’re toxic, they might be a mission field, but don’t allow them to be influencers. And find a new set of “best friends.”
We’ll discuss more of the saboteurs of the will of God in our next issue in a few weeks. Until then, I pray you enjoy the will of God in “the here and now” on your way to a “future and a hope.”
