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Knowing God’s Will for Your Life

Knowing God’s Will for Your Life

Have you ever struggled to know what God would have you do in a given situation? Have you ever been in a circumstance in which there was no absolute right or wrong and you needed to make a decision, but you weren’t sure what to do? You wanted to honor God, but the situation wasn’t one that God’s Word gives any specific wisdom about. The facts and evidences before you were not sufficient for you to know which course was best. Such decisions as: Should I attend this church or that church; go to this school or that one; which car should I buy; should I accept the job offer and move to another city; should we sell our house or buy a house or rent?

Many of life’s decisions have no specific direction from God’s Word and are left up to us. Yet, we don’t want to squander God’s blessings; we don’t want to waste resources; we don’t want to dishonor God; we want to be good stewards because we believe in God and love Him. Too often, we struggle with the dilemma of believing in God yet not knowing what He would have us do in any given situation.

We might even have a history of making decisions on our own and getting burned by the outcome and, having been burned, we are doubly hesitant to make new decisions. We might be gun-shy and overly cautious. If you have such a history, have you reflected on what your past experiences can teach you, where the decision-making process broke down, and how to update the process in order to reduce the likelihood of moving in directions that are outside of God’s will?

As I look back on my life, I have discovered that sometimes I have been like King David, filled with love for God, moved with awe, overwhelmed with admiration for my incredible Creator and Savior; humbled and inspired by some new insight, experience, or intervention, my love for God motivated me to take action. And like David sought to build the temple, I launched into some project to honor the Lord. But then, like David, I discovered that in my enthusiasm, I was running ahead of God; I was jumping to conclusions, initiating actions or joining projects that were indeed good projects, that were for the Lord’s cause, but they just weren’t what God wanted me to do.

At other times, I have been like Jonah; my heart was convicted of God’s will, of what He wanted me to do, but the direction God was leading went against my wishes, cut across my desires, offended my inclinations, and so, like Jonah, I ran away from where the Lord was leading. And as a psychiatrist, I have discovered many ways that people run away from the Lord. We can run into good causes—just not the causes God has for us. We can run into sinful living seeking to silence the conviction of the Spirit. We can run into entertainment, relationships, or shopping. But no matter where we run, we will not be at peace until we stop running from the Lord.

But God is gracious. Even though I, at times, have run from God’s calling, He has never stopped chasing after me. I might have been hiding in the bushes, covering myself with fig leaves, but He always came for me, calling my name. But, like Jonah, sometimes I was stubborn and didn’t respond to His gentle calling, so God graciously allowed the storms of life to overwhelm me as I fled from His presence. And then I realized that no matter how hard I fought to stay afloat, without the Lord, I couldn’t. Whenever I have run away from the Lord, I always found the ship sinking and my only recourse was to jump into the sea and throw myself fully into the Lord’s care. Like Jonah, I found that I was lost without the Lord, drowning in my problems, suffocating in the darkness of guilt and shame, powerless to deliver myself. But in every case, when I surrendered myself to God and trusted Him with the outcome, He delivered me. He led me out of the dark depths back into the light. He took away my guilt, freed me from shame, and opened avenues to success, providing the resources to overcome, and solutions to my problems that I never even considered; then He put me right back on the path He had called for me to fulfill—and, oh, what joy filled my soul!

And then, at other times in my life I have been like Martha, not moved by awe into running ahead of the Lord, or running away from known revelation, but simply too busy with life’s real responsibilities to sit at Jesus’ feet and spend time with Him, listening to Him, communing with Him. One of the devil’s traps for those of us whom he cannot get to directly choose evil is to overburden us with good things so that we crowd out the essential—our time with Jesus.

As I look back on my life, I have discovered that being like David and running ahead of the Lord leads to disappointment; being like Jonah and running away leads to defeat; and being like Martha and running around in business leads to exhaustion.

As I reflected on these three Bible characters, I realized that in no case did these people reject God. They were not unbelievers; they had not lost faith in God. They had merely stopped listening. They had allowed their circumstances to stir up emotions that motivated them to act without first going to Jesus. It wasn’t a lack of faith in God; it was a lack of a moment-to-moment living connection with God.

David was a believer whose belief inspired him to seek to do a great work for the Lord—it just wasn’t the work God wanted him to do. Jonah had faith in God, knew God had called him, but he just didn’t like what he was called to do. And Martha was working to prepare a meal for Jesus, not because she didn’t love and trust Him, but because she did; she just didn’t stop to let Him feed her with the bread of life.

In each of their lives, they had moments when they were overcome with emotion—David with love and awe, Jonah with fear and anger, Martha with stress and a frantic sense of being overwhelmed. And they allowed their emotions to immediately move them to action, to direct them, to determine their choice. They didn’t merely allow the emotions to energize them and go to the Lord for His direction; instead, they allowed the emotions to launch them, to initiate their course, to form their conclusions. I have discovered that I have made the same mistake in many places in my life.

And then I remembered Elijah. After his great victory at Carmel, he was threatened by Jezebel and so overwhelmed with fear that he ran away discouraged and hid himself in a cave. And in that place of discouragement …

A great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave (1 Kings 19:11–13 NIV84).

I have learned that it is during times of great emotion that I am tempted most to run ahead, or run away, or run around, but it is exactly at those times that I need to “be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10). It is in times of great emotion that I need to seek the Lord and pour out my feelings to Him. It is then that I need to find that quiet place where I can hear the voice of God speak to me. For when emotions are strong, it is often difficult to listen—to hear what God is saying.

So, I have discovered that when my emotions are running high, I must go to God. I must praise Him when filled with awe; pour out my complaint to Him when I am burdened with frustration, anger, or hurt; and cry out to Him for help when I am overwhelmed with stress. And then I must stay with Him, abiding in His presence, allowing His hand to touch me, until I find that quiet place of surrender and can hear the still small voice speaking to my soul.

What I have discovered is that few Christians actually lose “faith” in God—few stop believing that God exists, or that God is love, or that He is powerful, or that He is anything less than a God of miracles capable of great and wondrous things. No, most Christians don’t struggle with this (at least not on a day-to-day basis). What most of us struggle with is the difference between the general faith in God and maintaining a daily living connection with God, an active experience of knowing God personally, of being able to hear the still small voice directing our paths. That is because maintaining a living connection requires that we spend daily quiet time with Jesus. We must step away from the digital world, lay down the daily burdens, pause from “doing” for God and start “being” with God.

So don’t be like David and run ahead, or like Jonah and run away, or like Martha and run around; instead, choose to spend quiet time with God sharing your heart with Him, but then listening to hear His voice. Then, when uncertain with what God would have you do, run to Jesus and just be with Him. Get away from the business, the screens, the news, the problems, and the stress and just spend some quiet time with God. Ask for God’s presence, wisdom, direction, comfort, and healing, and it will be given to you; seek to know God personally, intimately, and fully, and you will find He has been waiting for you to come home to Him your entire life. Knock on heaven’s door, and the storehouse of God’s blessings will be open to you.

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Testimony 2

I continue to enjoy your lessons every week. The more that I research your conclusions, the more I am convinced that the Holy Spirit has lead you to distill out the essence of human redemption. Thank you for your courageous stand for the truth.

S. G., TX, USA

 

Testimony 68

Your message of design law vs imperial law is so uplifting and makes so much sense- it is a game changer for me. The fact that Jesus’s death is not a big payment by an angry God is , quite frankly, a relief.

Laura G., London, Ontario, Canada

 

Testimony 48

I just want to tell you how blessed I have been reading “The Remedy!” It has become a daily part of my devotional relationship with God. In it I have found a God of love and a God that loves me! The bible has come alive for me! It is the first time that I can say that I have felt hope fill my heart as I have read God’s word. This is good news I can share! Thank you, Dr Jennings! Thank you for your heart for others. I can’t put into words how this has set me free! It has strengthened my trust and love for God.

Jason H.

 

Testimony 4

I’m a youth leader in South Africa. We as a youth group are currently using a lot of the material on the Come and Reason site. Since we’ve started using the material, our youth group has grown.

R. V. N., South Africa

 

Testimony 35

I am so pleased with the response your message is receiving at my church from the middle-aged to the young adults. I have given out 100 copies of the first two seminars and there are more request every week. One of my [class members] came to me after viewing the series, grateful and impressed with how easy the message was retained. He had been a Seventh-day Adventist in fear all his life, and felt like the scales were removed from his eyes after viewing the seminars. I am so impressed by the change I see in members who have received this message, we are in one accord. However, I am sadden by the negative response of the older people. I am verbally attacked anytime I talk about imposed laws, but I believe my mission is to enlightened everyone I can. I watch your Bible Study Class on YouTube every Friday night and I feel like I am apart of the class. All of you are in one accord and I am so blessed to have found you. I pray that all of you continue to spread this message and I am committed to doing my part.

Clara S., Westfield, MA, USA

 

Testimony 32

The message [of Come And Reason Ministries is] for all Christians (and those who may become Christians) and not just Adventists or any other group. It is difficult to imagine why any [anyone] with intellectual and spiritual honesty could find fault with the way you explained the healing substitution concepts and the truth about God’s character, though I know some will reject and criticize. On behalf of those in our group near Tacoma, WA, thank you and your staff for all of the hard work and for sharing the Gospel in this manner. God’s message of healing love will be carried to the whole world and then Jesus will come – He promised it.

Terry U., Tacoma, WA, USA

 

Testimony 51

I Love This Ministry!!!!!!! I see first hand how this message is desperately needed, how erroneous beliefs about God and His Character negatively affect humanity at every level. I thank God for your ministry, as I was searching on my own and was discovering some of your same beliefs and was blown away when I found your ministry. I know you hear it all the time, but it is truly life changing. May God continue to reveal His Will to you and Bless you!

Eric S., Sanford, FL, USA

 

Testimony 37

Hearing Dr. Jennings’ presentations in person came at a pivotal moment in my spiritual journey that began about nine months ago, when the fault lines inherent in my belief system began to crack under questions that most reasonable people end up asking about God and His nature. These were questions I couldn’t find answers to, and they shook my faith. I was unable let it go any longer and be satisfied. My Christian experience became distant. I was afraid; the fear in me rose like thorns, pushing me away from Jesus. And then someone heard my questions and introduced me to this ministry, and my life has totally changed.

I can tell you that this new, “present truth” message is far grander and life-changing than when I shifted from being an agnostic and then a nominal Christian. It has radically altered my worldview, because it reveals a God that makes sense. It is a revolution. I believe that Dr. Jennings’ message is the final message that must go to the world. If any message could be called “righteousness by faith,” as abused as that term is by the right and the left, this is that message, because Jennings’ biblical message identifies a God who is different, whose character isn’t an impossible contradiction.

I walk this path now without fear. I see people differently, and the Holy Spirit burns in my heart. Many call Dr. Jennings’ message false and compromising, but it isn’t false, because I’ve seen the fruits within my mind and body. It is not compromising, because in this message is the only road to holiness that makes any sense. No longer do I behold a pagan god who is always angry and suspicious. Instead, I behold a God who is freeing and loving, always working for our good, and giving me every reason to love my enemy even to my own death, just as Jesus pleads with us. God is good.

Anthony L., CA, USA

 

Testimony 71

When I was 9 years old, I remember setting at our devotional table with a hunger and thirst for God that wanted more, deeper, BETTER. I can remember literally crying and pounding on the table, “I know these teachers didn’t mean to give us error. They taught what THEY had been TAUGHT, but didn’t ANYBODY READ THE BOOK?!?!?” It mattered to me then. It mattered to me as a teenager. It matters now as I teach bible classes. It didn’t have to be so hard as I watched so many give up and lay God’s great plan and gift of salvation aside as being “impossible.” Then, a friend sent me a link to Come And Reason’s website. I grew excited. YES! FINALLY! Then another friend told me to stay away, saying her son had just broken up with a girl because she was involved with Come And Reason and that “Tim Jennings preaches a false gospel.” But, AFTER many years of developing an authentic and, dare I say FUN relationship with Jesus, through the Holy Spirit I see this message has been around a LONG time, since the apostle Paul, Ellen White, Graham Maxwell, Ray Foucher, and yourself (though I admit, you’ve made me back up, rewind and replay the clips, and get out my well-worn Bible on a few things.) I’m so thankful I have found LIGHT during these DARK days. I am not alone.

Vicki DiNitto

Testimony 47

I can’t even begin to thank you and your ministry enough for introducing me to the Truth about a loving and merciful God! I have my daughter and her in-laws to thank for sharing with me “The God-Shaped Brain” as well as your website. I listen to the Bible study class lessons on my daily walk. May God continue to bless your thirst-quenching ministry!

Liz H., Port Angeles, WA, USA

 

 

Testimony 1

Thank you! I love listening to the Come And Reason Ministries Bible study classes and am using some of your notes to get the lessons together that I will be teaching. You always have such good quotes and Bible texts and pull things together to make good sense.

T. C., IN, USA

 

Testimony 33

I was invited over a friend’s house to see the “God and Your Brain” seminar today. I became [a christian] 36 years ago at the age of 19, but have struggled with the concept of God taking His ‘pound of flesh’ out on His Son to be appeased. Wow. Your seminar has been an incredible revelation and breath of reason and fresh air! I have your book, “The God Shaped Brain,” and it is SO eye opening. Finally, after 36 years enlightenment has come! Praise the Good Lord! What can I say, but that the Real Gospel is truly “Good News!” Thank you for your efforts in giving the Gospel a clear sound!

Paul C.,  Springfield, MA, USA

 

Testimony 27

Your teachings about our heavenly Father have changed my life. Thank you sooooooo very very much! I know He’s doing some serious healing in my heart and life and I look forward to each new day to learn something new about Him and to just hear you speak about Him. Thank you, forever.

Nancy S.

 

Testimony 40

I was brought up in a different faith and have been petrified my whole life of God. I believed that I would burn in hell for eternity. When I was 12 I started pursuing the things of this world, but for the next 45 years the Spirit was always calling me, as I knew there was a God through nature. I could see the vast sea of stars in the universe and knew there was something bigger out there. Five years ago, through a Revelation seminar, I was blessed to learn about God’s character and government.

Then I found Come and Reason Ministries and have come under some extreme pressure when I speak about the ministry. One time a member sent me an internet article titled “Whats wrong with Tim Jennings?” I asked her what she thought of it and she said “I don’t know, I didn’t read it.”

I have always wanted to find out for myself the truth about God, so I stayed with the Design Law construct and have been liberated to understand the big picture. Once we consider Design Law, all other Bible stories and prophecies seem to fit perfectly. It is truly beautiful to see people grasping how God operates this Universe of Love and the liberation it has provided in their lives. It blows my mind to see how consistent Design law is with what our founders believed. I hear statements like “This makes so much sense.”

Tom W., Mt. Pleasant, MI, USA

 

Testimony 19

I truly believe that to know who God really is the first step to understand ourselves in a balanced and kind way, so the healing can take place. Your approach really makes sense – Thank you for your ministry!

A.M., Pittsburg, PA, USA