Most Christians I know want to live and do the will of God. They seek God in prayer and scripture reading to determine direction. This might include large things such as a vocation, what town to live in, what house to buy and where the kids go to college. It also includes the day to day things such as charitable giving, where to find a church home, what ministry to get involved with, and how to best steward time.
If I understand the perfect will of God it means getting in tune with God's plan for an individual's life and following that plan to its conclusion. What happens if you make a wrong turn and get off the plan. What happens say if you marry the wrong person, choose the wrong career, make an unwise financial investment that backfires, or pull a Jonah and rebel against God's promptings. Is the rest of your life sentenced to doom and gloom?
In some instances personal decisions have lasting ramifications. Ask Abraham and Ismael. Still that one bad choice did not keep God from using Abraham to become the father of the nation of Israel. Some of you may find yourself stuck. Stuck in a loveless marriage. Stuck in a dead end job. Stuck in heartache and misery of your own creation. If so what do you do now? It is not like you go back and undo every decision to get yourself back on track.
I am thankful for the wisdom of God to not only have His perfect will but also to have the contingent plan of His permissive will where He factors in those wrong turns in our lives and how to get us from where we are to where He wills us to be. There is good news here. If you did make a wrong turn along the way God is not finished with you. If you seek Him and follow His leadership He will faithfully guide you to where He wills you to be.
Early on in my pastoral ministry I was stuck in a dead end church. In hindsight I do not believe God willed me to serve that church but all I cared about was the fact that a door opened for me to pastor a church. I jumped through it. A little research would have told me I was not a good fit for that church and the church was not a good fit for me. I served that flock longer than I have served anywhere else at five years. Those were five tough years. The church split. The finances dwindled. My salary had to be cut twice. Attendance plummeted. I prayed my heart out during those years.
In the middle of all of that a church from Tyler, TX sent me a letter requesting my resume. Foolishly I shut that door by telling them to pray and seek God's man and refused to send a resume. I really was interested and even drove to Tyler to find the church. I hoped they would come back and revisit me. They never did and I had to endure another two and a half years of pain filled ministry. I am convinced God was offering me a way out of a difficult situation to get my life on track. What resulted. I spent another seven years in that area starting a full time traveling ministry and then starting a church. We experienced more trials than I can tell. Though we went through painful times God did not forsake us. He used that time to break me and then to rebuild me.
God's perfect will I don't believe would have ever lead me to that first church I served to begin with. God's permissive will allowed me to persevere and He used those years to teach me a lot about what it means to be a pastor. While I do not believe that was God's perfect will for the Edwards family I know in His permissive will He used that time to teach me and grow me. He used the whole twelve years we lived in that area.
Maybe you can identify the exact moment you got off the tracks of God's perfect will. You see it clear as day. What now? Acknowledge that and keep seeking God day in and day out. You may have to repent. You may have to face the facts that the difficulties you are facing are your own doing. Remain faithful where you are. Work at the marriage trusting God to make it a mutual blessing for you and your spouse. Keep doing your best at your job patiently trusting the Lord to put you where He wants you in His time by opening doors. Keep working trusting God to build your finances back and to dig you out of a financial hole.
Eph 3:20 says God is able. He is able to accomplish His purposes even when we get off track. He is able to forgive our mistakes and to sew a tapestry where all it gets woven together to create the purpose of His design.
Where are you today. If you one of those living out God's designs for your life and walking in His perfect will God bless you. Keep seeking, listening, and following. Surely your life is blessed and brimming with satisfaction. If you are not one of those people do not fret. Simply ask God to accomplish His will in your life right now where you are. Either way our Father is exceedingly able to work out His plans for us if we submit and are willing to obediently follow Him.
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