How Do I Know?

When thinking of God's will for your life, we often think: "What college does HE want me at?" "Who does HE want me with?" "What if God doesn't want me there?" "What if I'm not taking the right job or picking the right city?".

We do know a few things about His will for ALL of us. 

1. That we will be saved. 

2. We will be filled with the Holy Spirit. 

3. We are pure. 

4. We submit to proper authorities. 

5. We will suffer for doing what is right. 

It all begins with us. You see, God is a gentleman. He waits on us to come running to Him. He isn't going to force us into salvation. That's why we have free will. To live our lives glorifying Him in all we do, or choose to follow the evil. There's no in between. 

"Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

Actually, God's will isn't about where you go; it's about what you do when you get there. 

It's not about the 'perfect' college; it's about the type of student you are. 

It's not about the atmosphere you're in; it's how you handle it. 

It's not the 'perfect' job; it's how you use that job to GLORIFY Him. 

It's not about who He wants you with; it's about what that relationship/friendship is centered around. 

God loves us so much that he gave us the freedom to make our own choices. But, He said make them wisely. 

"Get wisdom- how much better it is than gold! And get understanding- it is preferable to silver." Proverbs 16:16

Yes, God does give personal guidance, but those cases are rare. (1 Corinthians 14:7-9)

So don't worry, don't stress about not hearing a specific plan for God! As long as you are living a Godly lifestyle and glorifying Him through it all; He will give you the desires of your heart. 

This is Not Your Battle

Jesus came, not just to give eternal life to those who believe in Him and live for Him, but to give us a life on earth that is fuller and more abundant.
If being a Christian was easy, everyone would be one. A lot of people have this idea in their head that if you become a Christian, you have a perfect life from then on. Its our job to sacrifice worldly things and let God take control over our life. Through spreading the Word and expressing your beliefs, you have to know that there is going to be times when people, maybe even everyone, will mock you. They will ridicule you and persecute you.

"Those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples" Luke 14:33

Instead of hoping God will, we should believe He already has. Christians sometimes get a reputation of being hypocritical or judgmental. Instead of being insulted by that assumption, we should just change it. Respond to negative words or actions with love. If Jesus didn't love us, He wouldn't have died for all of us to have an eternal life. Even when Jesus, who is PERFECT, was up on that cross getting yelled at, spit on, mocked, PERSECUTED, He pleaded to God by saying, "Lord forgive them, for they know not what they're doing."
It is not our job to judge people because they sin differently than us. If we spend our life doing that, we will stray away from the plan God already has for us and will also be judged.. by our Heavenly Father.

"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, authorities, powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." Ephesians 6:12

God isn't a punisher. He doesn't throw obstacles at you because you sin and fall short of His glory. 

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance." James 1:2-3

Instead, He gives you another chance. We will go through trials and temptations, not to hurt us, but to challenge our faith and prepare us for what is to come.

"Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

By knowing Christ, we know He is the Comforter and the Healer. Through Him, we will find peace in any struggle.
The word "comforter" in Greek means defense attorney. What exactly does a defense attorney do? They defend the innocent. It's pretty much like you're on trial and God is your attorney. Actually, that's exactly what it is.

"This is not your fight, you need only to be still." Exodus 14:14

Those who come to Jesus realize they still struggle with the same problems they did before. But they now have powerful resources to help them along the way and situations that seemed impossible become possible. (Philippians 4:13)

Jesus never promised it would be easy. He promised that it would be possible and rewarding.
Our struggle is not just with our own flesh. There's an enemy who seeks to destroy our faith, slow us down and discourage us.
Resist him, standing firm in faith, because you know that your brothers are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. (1 Peter 5:8-9)
You are not alone. You never have been. With Christ inside of you, you can conquer any battle.. against yourself, friends, family, and the secular world we live in.