Preserved by Purpose: God’s Purpose vs God’s Will?

A cheerful look brings joy to the heart, and give health to the bones.

My Monday stated off the normal way: I went to work, met with a few students, had a few meetings and went to my Zumba (I love any class where I can do The Wobble and call it exercise!) The day took an interesting turn when I spoke with a friend about a bible study class that he was attending. He shared how much the class had impacted his life and how he saw the importance of knowing and following God’s will.

One point that he made especially resonated with me. He said that instead of asking God what is His will for “our lives,” he said that we should instead ask for God to show us His will. I’d never heard that before and was both intrigued and confused at the same time. I wondered, ‘So “God’s will’ and ‘God’s will for our lives’ were different?” As he was explaining his point, I was thinking how can you do “God’s will” if you didn’t know His will for your life?

Then, I thought about the many times I’d prayed in the past few months to know what God’s will for my life was. Lately, I’d wondered whether it was possible to follow God’s purpose but still not know and follow God’s will. In my own life, I thought that by praying for God’s will to be done in my life, I’d put myself in the best position. And even though I was sure that I knew God’s purpose for my life, for some reason, I was now questioning whether I knew and followed God’s will. I started to think that maybe I’d mistakenly had the two confused and been praying the wrong thing as a result.

Later that day, I continued to think about my friend’s comments as I made my way to a women’s bible study at a co-worker’s church. Part of the bible study was focused on showing kindness to others. When we broke into our smaller group discussions, the leader of my group shared a scripture that she said related to showing kindness. Then, she began reading Micah 6:6-8” “But he's already made it plain how to live, what to do, what God is looking for in men and women. It's quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, And don't take yourself too seriously— take God seriously.” “Wow!” I thought, God just confirmed my friend’s earlier comments! I just love it when God does that!

Even Jesus prayed “not what I will, but what You will” when he was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane as described in Mark 14:36. I’d been complicating what was really a very simple spiritual issue: Knowing God’s purpose was good, but submitting to God’s sovereign will was the most important thing.

Shewanda Riley is the author of the Essence best-seller "Love Hangover: Moving from Pain to Purpose after a Relationship ends." She can be reached at lovehangover@juno.com, at www.shewandariley.com or www.anointedauthorsontour.com

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