Guaranteed!

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Thanks for your question. There are two categories of guidance we can receive from God that reveal His will for our lives. The first type is called God’s general guidance. General guidance contains the general will of God. This type of guidance is found in the written Word of God, the Bible. The Bible gives us clear guidance and reveals God’s will on many issues. For instance, the Bible clearly teaches that sexual relationships are confined to one man with one woman within the marriage relationship. The Bible also clearly teaches work, whether inside the home raising kids and taking care of the home or outside the home, is God’s will. It is not His will that we be idle or lazy. These areas are part of God’s general guidance for all believers.

However, the Bible is silent about which person we are to marry or the specific job we are to take. These issues call for the second type of guidance: specific guidance. Specific guidance comes from the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit dwells in the heart of every born again believer. He has been sent to guide us into all truth. The Word of God is truth. (John 17:17) The Spirit will lead us to know God’s general will. However, the Holy Spirit has also been sent to show us things to come in our personal lives. The Holy Spirit will guide us in all the affairs of life if we allow Him to, so we can walk in the specific will of God for our individual life.

Ezekiel 36:27:
I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.

This promise in Ezekiel speaks of the day in which we live. The Holy Spirit has been put within our hearts so He may cause us to walk in God’s will. This does not say He will force us to walk in His will, but He will cause us to walk in His will when we cooperate with Him. One of the main ways the Holy Spirit will show you God’s specific will for your life is by placing desires in your heart to do His will.

Philippians 2:12-13: 
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

Here we see that God is at work in us. The word for “works” in verse 13 is present tense in the original language and should be translated, “God who is constantly working in us to will and to do His good pleasure.” This astounding verse teaches us that God is actively placing desires in our hearts so our will becomes His will! What grace! Some fear God might call them to go somewhere they would hate if they totally submitted their lives to Him. They’re afraid God will ask them to do the last thing on earth they would want to do to “test” them and put them through a “trial of obedience.” The truth is, if you submit to God and to His will He will actually place in your heart the desire to do what He wants you do!

Psalm 37:4: 
Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.

This verse says if we delight ourselves in the Lord, He will give us our heart’s desires. It is impossible to delight in the Lord and also have desires that displease the Lord. Delighting in God and the desires in our hearts are connected. As we truly delight ourselves in God, God delights in placing within our hearts the desire for His will! God does not ask from us what He has not first put within us. This is grace.
How can we know that it is God’s will for us to be married? As we have seen, if we truly delight ourselves in God and we continue to have a deep yearning to be married, then we can know this desire has come from God! What a wonderful discovery! Those who are not called to be married have no desire to do so. They live very contented and full lives being single.
It is true that in life there are very few guarantees. However, in God there are many guarantees. God’s promises are guaranteed if we believe them! God is not a man that He can lie. (Num. 23:19) God cannot lie. (Titus 1:2)
Here are some guaranteed precious promises from the Word of God.

Proverbs 10:24: 
The fear of the wicked will come upon him, And the desire of the righteous will be granted.

Psalm 37:4: 
Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Psalm 107:9: 
For He satisfies the longing soul, And fills the hungry soul with goodness.

Psalm 145:16: 
You open Your hand And satisfy the desire of every living thing.

Psalm 145:19: 
He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him; He also will hear their cry and save them.

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. (James 4:8) As you give over your life and heart to God daily, examine your heart for what you really desire deep inside. Then take those desires to God in faith and request that they be met and satisfied on the basis of God’s guaranteed promises listed above.

Hebrews 6:12: 
In order that you may not grow disinterested and become [spiritual] sluggards, but imitators, behaving as do those who through faith (by their leaning of the entire personality on God in Christ in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness) and by practice of patient endurance and waiting are [now] inheriting the promises. (Amplified)

God will assuredly perform His Word, but undoubtedly, it will not be on our timetable!  We must be patient and actually prepare for His promise. If you desire to be married, I would suggest you start working on being the kind of person someone wants to marry. Do you know how to walk in love? Are your finances in order? Do you have unresolved emotional issues? Often, these must be resolved before God can bless us with a mate because He wants to protect us from the potential for heartache and divorce. Work on your relationship with God and trust that He is working in you to desire His will for your life.

Hope this helped

Rick McFarland
Director/Singles Director
Grace Church