HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS
EUGENE, OREGON
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the New American Standard Bible, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)
Verses marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible , New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189 USA. All rights reserved.
Verses marked MSG are taken from The Message. Copyright by Eugene H. Peterson 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.
Verses marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
Verses marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Italics in Scripture quotations indicate emphasis added by author.
In nearly all cases, the personal stories in this book are fictitious composite accounts based on the authors experiences and constructed for purposes of illustration only. They are not meant to refer to any person, living or dead. Where individuals may be identifiable, they have granted the author and the publisher the right to use their names, stories, and/or facts of their lives in all manners, including composite or altered representations.
Cover by Left Coast Design, Portland, Oregon
Cover photo Steve Terrill
WALKING IN THE WILL OF GOD
Copyright 2009 by Steve McVey
Eugene, Oregon 97402
www.harvesthousepublishers.com
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
McVey, Steve, 1954-
Walking in the will of God / Steve McVey.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-0-7369-2639-3 (pbk.)
ISBN 978-0-7369-3468-8 (eBook)
1. Christian life. 2. God (Christianity)Will. I. Title.
BV4501.3.M396 2009
248.4dc22
2008038743
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To John,
whose courage and commitment make him more like the apostle Paul than any other man Ive ever known .
I pray for you daily .
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CONTENTS
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I DON T KNOW WHAT TO DO , Trent told me after I had spoken at his church one Sunday. Theres a good chance I might be offered a position with a new company where my salary would be almost twice what it is now, which of course is very attractive. On the other hand, I love the job I have now, and Im afraid to give it up for something new that I could end up not enjoying nearly as much.
If I could only know what Gods will is for me, I would do it without hesitating. Im just not sure. If I could be sure, Id be willing to go either way. I just need to know.
Trents situation and question are very much like those we all seem to face regularly in our lives. We want to do the will of God. We certainly dont want to miss it, but how can a person know for sure what Gods will is in any given situation? The idea of making a wrong choice, which could put us on the wrong track in life, is a scenario none of us want to see come about. How, though, can we be sure? As I travel and speak in various places, this is a question I am often asked.
There are probably many reasons why this question weighs so heavily on peoples minds. Maybe it does on yours. In my years of talking to believers, Ive found that their concerns about finding the will of God fall into three main areas.
Big reason #1 . To start with, theres the burden of simply having to decide . The consequences of our choices can be so many and so devastating that we naturally feel anxiety over our ability to know and do the right thing. Many people are like Trent in their perspective. On the one hand, they know what their life is like right now, and theres nothing happening that would motivate them to seek a change. Its not that hard to make a decision for change if the circumstances youre in arent what you want, but when everything is okay it becomes easy to follow the leave well enough alone mind-set. In one of our discussions about his options, Trent said to me, Maybe I just shouldnt rock the boat. This perspective betrays a subtle fear about change in life, but Trent certainly isnt in a minority here. Underlying fears have paralyzed many people, keeping them from moving forward in life.
On the other hand, these same people want to be open to the possibility that God may have bigger and better things in store for them. If thats what is going on when they are faced with the potential of a move, they dont want to miss out. So they find themselves at a place where making a decision is, in and of itself, a stressful place to be. Do I do it or not do it? Just in itself, thats often a challenging question.
Big reason #2 . How to understand Gods will also often triggers a sense of anxiety in people because of misconceptions regarding what God wants and expects from us . If we have wrong ideas about expectations He may have for us, we will be stuck when it comes to confidently making life-altering decisions. After all, we certainly dont want to mess up. Some people think they have to find Gods will by determining the exact spot in the universe where He wants them to stand so they can do the exact thing He has in mind for them. To make matters worse, they think it is up to them to figure it all out for themselves. What a burden! That kind of viewpoint will cause anybody to be nervous and tentative about life.
As you move through this book, you will see that God never intended for us to live like that. In the chapters ahead, you are going to find yourself being set free from fears about the future based on decisions you make today. You will be pleased to discover how to make choices grounded in a calm confidence that your loving Father isnt going to let you make some foolish decision now that is going to wreck His perfect plan for you later. God is bigger than you, and He loves you enough to make sure that you discover His plan for you. Its up to Him, not you, to make it happen. Take note of that statement: Its all up to Him . The word for that kind of situation isgrace!
Grace means He does what needs to be done and you simply live in faith, as the beneficiary of His actions. You just respond to Him. Thats it. Knowing how to do that is what this book is about.
Big reason #3 . Additionally, many people are stressed out over knowing Gods will due to the common belief that His plan is mysterious so mysterious that it takes some kind of miraculous breakthrough in order to find exactly what it is. If we should miss that plan, we fear that it is gone forever and we will never recover from the loss. No wonder we feel anxiety and pressure! However, thats simply not the way it is and, again, youll come to understand the truth about this issue as you move ahead in your reading.