Revolution (Grace Vineyard Youth Group)

Q: “What does God want me to do in life?”

A:        If I were really crafty I’d say, “Wash your youth pastor’s car.”  But, I’d feel guilty, so I won’t…although, it is never a bad idea to wash your youth pastor’s car.  Sting can use all the babying he can get.  But I digress.

            The question you are asking has to do with the age old question “What is God’s will?”  A “will” is like a desire, but even stronger.  It’s like “what I want to happen.”  And yes, it is essentially the exact same word we use for that thingy Aunt Gertrude wrote so that people would know who gets her collection of Precious Moments figurines when she is no longer with us.  A person’s will (as in the paper) is what that person wants to happen after they die. 

            So what is God’s will?  Or in this case, what is God’s will for you?  It is important to note that when we speak of God’s will there are 2 basic “wills” God has (and no, none of them have to do with  what happens if He dies---that just isn’t going to happen).  The first is called “God’s general will.”  That is God’s will for each person as a human being.  We know what that is from the Bible very clearly.  That is things like making God happy, using your life to reflect well on Him, enjoying your relationship with Him, telling others about Him, loving people, being fair and good (there are a whole lot of verses for this---I won’t site them here).

            There is also “God’s specific will.”  That is the “Steve I want you to sell everything you have and become a missionary in Africa,” kind of thing.  Really, I assume that one is what most of your question is about.  The funny thing is, that is the one part of the question that I can’t answer.  I can give you a few guidelines from my knowledge of the Bible, training as a pastor, and experience, though.  But I can’t tell you what it is that God wants you to do with the rest of your life.

            First, if you want to know what He wants you to do…um, try asking Him.  I know it sounds weird, but He might actually have something to say about it.  In fact, I can almost guarantee you that if you seriously ask Him (and keep asking), and keep your eyes and ears tuned to KGod (the all God, all the time rock station), He will answer.  And when He does, it will probably surprise you.

            It won’t surprise you completely, though.  I have noticed that a person’s calling (what we call it when God lets you in on His will for your life) is usually where a person’s talent and passions intersect with God’s passions.  It isn’t usual that He tells you to do something you absolutely hate for the rest of your life.  But let me tell you a brief (and completely true) story about how that sometimes works in real life.

            When I started to know that God wanted me to spend my life as a career minister, I was excited and a little scared.  I followed Him as He kind of pulled me to where I needed to be to prepare for that.  As this was happening, He and I had a little conversation.  It went like this: “OK, God.  I’ll do this whole ministry thing.  I hear you, and I’m following.  I’ll do it.  But only if you never put me in youth ministry.”

            See, I knew that most young guys like myself, found their way into youth ministry automatically as they went into ministry.  I didn’t want to do that.  I also felt a really drawn to older people, like the wrinkly kind.  I didn’t feel a pull toward youth, and I didn’t feel like I had the kind of talent to be a youth pastor.  Where do you think He put me?  You know the answer to that!

            12 years later I am soooo glad He did.  I found a part of myself in youth ministry that I didn’t know existed.  God taught me so much more than I could’ve learned anywhere else.  I’ve lasted far longer in youth ministry than any other youth pastor I have known, and now when people talk about the idea of getting me to do anything but youth ministry I think, “Why would I ever stop doing youth?”  God changed me, and stretched me, and grew me.  He’s just that kind of God.

            Just to throw a little pineapple in the punchbowl: one way to know that a certain thing is definitely not the calling of God is if it contradicts anything in the Bible.  Now I’m not talking about Jesus telling Peter to fish on the left side of the boat.  You can be a Christian fisherman and fish on both sides of your boat.  I mean that God is not going to tell you to go out and become a drug dealer, when the Bible is clearly against things like that (Eph 5:18).

P.S.  There is a great resource on this one.  Check the recommended books section of this website.