Waiting for God in 2016

I just recently started listening to a new radio station on my daily commute to and from work. It is a Christian station called K-Love. I am sure many of you have heard of it, but I was in the dark about it until just a week or so ago. They often talk about a 30 Day Challenge where they challenge you to listen to only Christian music for 30 days. At that point, you should look back on the last few weeks to see if you notice any differences.

I have been listening to strictly Christian music for the last week or so, and I already notice a difference. There is just something about positive, encouraging music focused on God that starts my day off on the right foot. I come into work with a better attitude, more excited to get started, and I genuinely feel closer to God. Best part is…the songs are so fun and upbeat that I can still jam out in the car!! :)

While recently listening to the station, I heard a quote from an author about waiting on God's will for his life. While I don't remember the specific quote, I am going to attempt to paraphrase. The author said that he was praying constantly for God to reveal what path he should take. He was worried he wouldn't be able to hear what God wanted for his life. However, as he started reading his Bible, he realized that maybe we wait to hear God's voice rather than doing what he has already told us to do.

I started thinking about this. I often pray that God will show me the path He wants me to take. I pray that I have the wisdom and understanding to make the best choices. This conversation I heard on the radio made me think that maybe God doesn't necessarily care which path we take, as long as we are living our lives for Him. Sometimes we are faced with a decision, and we aren't sure what we should do. I truly believe that we should pray for wisdom, but I also think that if we are living out what God has told us to do, the decision isn't nearly as important as our actions.

I don't know if I can quite get it into words what I am saying so I am going to give you an example. I was faced with a situation in which I was offered two different teaching positions last year. I was stressed out because I didn't know where God would wanted me to be. I prayed and prayed, but I just didn't feel like He was leading me in a specific direction. I remember saying to my mom that I wish God would have just written in the Bible somewhere what job I should take.

But God doesn't have it written in the Bible. He doesn't answer every single question that we have. But he does provide us with a guidebook that has many directions. He tells us to worry about nothing. He tells us to pray without ceasing. He tells us to love our neighbors. So while He doesn't give us direct answers to many of our questions, He does give us a lot of guidance.

I have decided that I am going to create a list of all the directions God has given me. I have a few written down, and as I come across them in my readings I will add them to my list. I think I will check in next week with my list so far.

I encourage you to think about what we can be doing in the midst of our praying. Sometimes God wants us to continue living for Him, and through our actions, He will reveal His path for us!