FINDING THE WILL OF GOD

I had a wonderful dinner with some friends at Melbourne's famous Lygon Street. There are many restaurants situated in this area. Many people come to Lygon street for Italian, Greek and Chinese cuisine. I like the pizza, pasta and ice cream on Lygon street too.


FINDING THE WILL OF GOD

When I was in Melbourne, Australia, I was asked to share to a group of working adults on the topic of “Finding the Will of God”. I was contemplating what to share because this is such an important topic. As I was waiting on God, some scripture passages and thoughts came to my mind.

The word of the LORD came to me, saying, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations." Jeremiah 1:4-5

God told a teenaged Jeremiah in the Old Testament that He had a calling for Jeremiah even before he was born. God had a specific plan for Jeremiah to be a prophet to the nation of Israel. God knew us before we were born and He has a specific plan for our lives.

Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. Mark 8:34

Jesus told the crowd and His disciples to follow Him. It means that God had a plan for the people and the disciples – otherwise he would not invite them to follow Him. If God has His plans for our lives, we should try to discover it rather than living aimlessly, without any purpose or direction.

I would like to share some ways of finding the will of God.

Surrender to God

It is difficult to discover the will of God if you are too preoccupied with your own plans, dreams and desires. I remember when I was a young Christian, I had many of my own plans that I wanted to accomplish in life. Even though I wanted to know God’s plan for my life, I was too busy pursuing my own dreams. I had to come to a stage when I was willing to surrender my plans in exchange for God’s higher plans and purpose for my life. Sometimes, we are reluctant to surrender to God because we are afraid of losing out in life or missing opportunities.

Over the years, I have discovered that God’s plans are always far superior than ours. He desires the very best for my life and I should learn to trust in Him every day.

Pursue God

We make appointments with friends or family so that we can become closer with them. We want to form stronger relationships by making the time and effort to be with them. Likewise, in order to know the will of God, we need to pursue God. We can pursue God by arranging a specific time with Him such as daily devotion or just by communion with God throughout the day. God is everywhere and He can communicate His thoughts and will for our lives anytime He wishes. We need to learn to cultivate the presence of God wherever we are so that God can communicate with us on a regular basis.

I got into a routine of worshiping God, reading the Bible and journaling each morning so that God can speak to me.

Persevere until the end

“Never, never give up!” were the powerful words uttered by Winston Churchill, prime minister of the United Kingdom in World War II. We have a tendency to give up too easily especially when we face obstacles, challenges or a delayed answer. We should persevere until God provides an answer in his etiming. Giving up is like throwing in the towel or walking away from the blessings or promises from God. Sometimes, we need to go through the storms of life in order to gain a greater victory in God. We have a faithful God who will never leave or forsake us. God will fulfil His promises in the right time.

Many people in the Bible had to persevere for many, many years before they discovered and realised the will of God like Abraham, Joseph, Job, David, Moses, Joshua etc. Let God fulfil His purpose/will in your life as you persevere.

MANIFEST

I had the opportunity to stay in Melbourne City for ten days which gave me plenty of time for sightseeing and photography. I love this city because there are many things to see and a lot of great places to eat. I love the Vietnamese and Chinese food in Melbourne.




MANIFEST

We have a God that desires to manifest, display or reveal his presence in our lives. God wants to be glorified and exalted in our home, workplace and community. We need to allow God to do His work in and through us. God can do amazing things in our world when we give Him permission. I really want to shine for Jesus with every breath that I have on earth. Would you like to let God shine through you in a wonderful way?

Let the manifestation of God be known in the following areas:

Allow God to manifest in our lives

Nathanael had a firsthand encountered with Jesus. Nathanael first heard of Jesus through Philip who told him about the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ. Later on, Nathanael had a personal encounter with Jesus. Nathanael was amazed by Jesus revealing his true identity. He was further amazed when Jesus described Nathanael as a true Israelite and how Jesus saw Nathanael under the fig tree before Philip told him about Jesus. Nathanael believed that Jesus was the Son of God based on his personal experience and conviction. Read John 1:43-49:

43The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, "Follow me." Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45Philip found Nathanael and told him, "We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph." "Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?" Nathanael asked. "Come and see," said Philip. When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, "Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false." "How do you know me?" Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, "I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you." Then Nathanael declared, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel." John 1:43-49

Christianity is not a religion but a personal experience with God. We need to have a dynamic relationship with God. Let God manifest Himself in our lives in a real and tangible way.

God longs to reveal His love, wisdom, power and presence in us.

Allow God to manifest in our occupation

Whatever is your occupation, God desires to manifest himself through you. Abraham was just a farmer before God told Abraham that He will make Abraham into a great nation, a great name and a blessing to many people. Read Genesis 12:2

"I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing". Genesis 12: 2

Wherever Abraham went, God used him to be a blessing to the people. Abraham became wealthy because God helped him prosper; he had many animals and abundant crops. God is not limited to the four walls of the church. He can manifest his presence in our daily lives as we carry on with our day to day work.

Allow God to reveal Himself in a powerful way in your occupation.

Allow God to manifest in our surroundings

God desires Christians to manifest His love and healing to the whole world. We are called to be the light of the world and a city on a hill that can be seen from a distance. Let God’s light shine through us in this hurting world.

“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden”. Matthew 5:14

We can make a difference in our society by carrying the message of hope and love found in Jesus Christ.

INVADED BY HIS GLORY

I am back in Melbourne, Australia to celebrate a "20th Friendship Anniversary" with Pastor Mark Rusic. We have been good friend for twenty years. We met each other at "Youth With A Mission" base in Melbourne in 1990. Pastor Mark has made a significant impact into my life because he was my spiritual mentor when I was a new believer. It is exciting to see God working in both our lives through the past twenty years. God is indeed faithful. I took photos of the place where we lived together and the park where we prayed together. The first few photos are my favorite eating places in Melbourne.


INVADED BY HIS GLORY

I am currently reading through 1st and 2nd Chronicles in the Bible. I was so inspired when I read about the fire and glory of God coming down from heaven and filling the temple as King Solomon dedicated the temple to God. The glory of God is the presence and reality of God. When we are invaded by the glory of God, we will experience a greater dimension of God. We will experience a greater breakthrough, victory and blessing when the glory of God comes upon us. Do you desire for the glory of God to invade your life?

2 Chronicles 7:1-3 (New International Version)

The Dedication of the Temple

When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. 2 The priests could not enter the temple of the LORD because the glory of the LORD filled it. 3 When all the Israelites saw the fire coming down and the glory of the LORD above the temple, they knelt on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying,"He is good; his love endures forever.

I would like to share about the glory of God that comes into our midst.

The glory of God comes when we honour God

King Solomon was commissioned by his father King David to build a temple to act as a place of worship and God’s dwelling place. King Solomon honoured God by investing all the resources and manpower for the completion of the temple. God is pleased when we want to honour Him with our lives.

God comes to dwell among people that desire to exalt His holy name.

The glory of God comes when we worship God

King Solomon worshipped God with animal sacrifices. The Bible says that God dwells in the midst of our worship. As we worship God with our voices and our lives, the presence of God will come. Over the last few years, I have learnt to come into the presence of God through worship. As I worship God, I can sense God’s love, peace and direction.

Worship is a vehicle to bring the glory of God into our lives, community and the church.

The glory of God comes when we seek God

King Solomon was seeking God through prayer. The more we communicate with God, the more we can experience His glory. We can express our love, adoration and gratitude toward God in prayer. The Bible says that when we draw close to God, He will draw close to us.

When we earnestly seek God, His glory will be manifested.

MY PRESENT HELPER

I had a pleasant afternoon at Glenelg beach in Adelaide with my friends and family. I have always wonderful memories every time I return to my hometown of Adelaide. I completed my secondary school and university studies in Adelaide. I also found Christ in Adelaide twenty one years ago at Paradise Community Church. Adelaide is also famous for its vineyards and wineries. Our family visited the McLaren Vale winery for some red wine tasting.


MY PRESENT HELPER

Currently, a big volcanic eruption in Iceland has filled the sky across Europe with ash and smoke. All the airlines had to cancel flights and passengers were left stranded at the airports and hotels with nowhere to go. Many businesses were affected because of this natural disaster. The world in which we live can be unpredictable. As I am writing this blog, there is a severe drought and earthquake happening at the same time in a particular country.

I found comfort reading these Bible verses during my devotion time this morning from Psalm 46.

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. Psalm 46:1-2

The Bible says that God is our refuge and strength and an ever-present help in trouble. God is with us in the midst of our troubles and He will give us the strength to walk through our troubles. God is always ready to help us in time of need. We should not fear our situations because God is with us. We need to keep our focus on God and not on our problems or challenges.

Our faith in God will weaken and fear will increase when we lose focus of God.

“Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.” Psalm 46:10

God wants us to be still and know that He is God and He is in control. The earth and the nations are under His dominion and influence. God knows everything before it happens. He has the answer for every situation. We need to surrender to God more each day and allow Him to lead us into His plans and purposes.

He is my present help for every trouble that I face today and tomorrow. God is all powerful and He can do all things.