"How To Know God's Will For Your Life" Series

Iliff and Saltillo UM churches

August 25, 2002

“How to Know God’s Will for Your Life”

Psalm 16

Introduction: How many think it is difficult to know God’s will for your life? How many don’t think it is? Most people probably think it is difficult, however, scripture does not bear this out. There are many scriptures that point out that God is far more ready to reveal His will to us than we are ready to receive it. Psalms is one book in particular that confirms this idea.

Today’s Psalm is called a Michtam of David. It is considered a golden Psalm, one that is very precious and to be valued as gold because it speaks of Christ and His resurrection. It is one of the Messianic psalms tucked away in the pages of the Old Testament, and it speaks of God’s continual care and guidance. Let’s see what we can find out that will help us in our search to know God’s will.

1. Getting Over the Myth that God’s Will is Difficult to Find: We need to get over the idea that God’s will is so difficult or even impossible to know. Although David made a lot of foolish mistakes in his lifetime, as well as we do, he was a person who continually had his sights set on God. He was quick to return to the Lord in repentance when he sinned. He talked with the Lord daily no matter what mood he was in or what he was experiencing. Psalm 16 starts out by asking the Lord to keep him safe. It is thought that this Psalm was written during a time of peace and quiet and that he was not in any extreme danger at this time.

Sometimes when things are going well for us and there are no major crises in our lives, we don’t pay much attention to the Lord. We take him for granted. We don’t bother to go to church much or pray or really ask for God’s guidance. David prayed, “Keep me safe, O God, for in You I take refuge. Apart from you I have NO GOOD THING.” (vs. 1).

This verse says a lot to us about finding the will of God through having an ONGOING relationship with the Lord. He is saying, “I am putting my TOTAL CONFIDENCE in You Lord.” He approaches God as “MY Lord.” This indicates that he had a personal relationship and he knew that God was the SOURCE of all benefits. He had the expectation of safe keeping. He had a covenant with the Lord with the promise that he would be kept, guarded, and protected because he was seeking refuge in Him.

Psalm 63 shows the depth of his confidence and reliance. He says in Psalm 63:1, “O God, you are MY God, EARNESTLY I seek you. My soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.”

When we are apathetic about God, it will be difficult to find His will. Too often we yawn in God’s face. We do not earnestly seek Him. We don’t put much effort at all into finding Him or His will.

In contrast, a similar verse that shows David’s seriousness about approaching God is found in Psalm 42:1 where he says, “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.”

He goes on to say, “the sorrows of those will increase who run after other gods.” David positioned himself under the umbrella of God’s care and had complete confidence that God would guide him and direct him in all his ways.

If I am walking close to God, I will hear him. Trust and confidence in God is the strongest reason why God should hear my prayers. David had an experience of faith. Likewise we get over the myth that God’s will is difficult to find when we have the experience of faith. We have to begin to believe that God WANTS to reveal his will to us and that he will certainly do it. Our failure to hear it is often crowded out by all of the other things that demand our attention. We go roaring after all kinds of gods--business, pleasure, family, etc.

David showed this sense of confidence and trust by:

1. praising God throughout the psalms

2. and by his obedience to God

Have you put yourself in the position where you can hear from God? What do you delight in and seek after? What other gods are you tempted to pursue? David did not want anything to do with counterfeit gods. Psalm 86:10 says, “For you are great and you ALONE are God.”

2. How Do We Make Hearing from God Difficult?: