Spiritual Disciplines #11: Guidance

How do I know God’s will for my life?  That is the age-old question.  That is also the question which Richard Foster attempts to answer in the chapter entitled “Guidance” in his book, Celebration of Discipline.

          Guidance often begins with an impression or prompting in our spirit.  Sometimes it may be something we are inclined to and would enjoy doing, sometimes it is not.  In either case, we just “feel” like it is something we should do.  Sometimes it is a small thing like putting our pocket change in a Salvation Army kettle, taking the time to stop and help someone who has dropped their shopping, or a sudden thought to write or call someone with a word of encouragement; other times it is a big thing like starting a new ministry in your church or even being called into “professional” ministry.

          Unless it is a small spur-of-the-moment act of kindness, it is a good idea to meditate and pray about a prompting, to engage the mind in thinking, as well as the heart in feeling about it.  If it is of God, it will only get stronger.  It is also necessary to make sure to align the prompting with Scripture.  An old saying goes, “God’s will never contradicts God’s Word.”  I always put it this way: God is NOT calling you to rob the bank and give the money to the church!

          Foster includes guidance among the corporate disciplines in his book because guidance should always include a corporate element.  For any major spiritual decision, after we have consulted God’s Word, and thought and prayed about it, we check our calling with those we can trust to help us with discernment from our family and our church community.

          Not all promptings require a full-blown guidance process and not all the things God calls us to even require promptings.  It is always God’s will that we participate in church, family, and community.  It is always God’s will that we work hard at whatever we do and that we be kind, compassionate, and generous.  We do not have to wait for guidance to do those things.

          We need to do more in our church to be the kind of community that can offer spiritual guidance to one another.  I leave you with a couple of quotes I saw online recently, I do not know where they originally came from, “God’s will is what we would want if we knew what we wanted,” and, “God’s will is what you would want if you knew what God knows.”