February 4
“We have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” Colossians 1:9-10
I frankly find it difficult to repeatedly, throughout the day, ask the Lord what He would have me do, to be regularly asking Him, “What would You like me to accomplish, what’s next?” This is awkward, because I have spent my entire life for the most part doing the opposite, and it is scary, because I am obligating myself to do what He wants, and it usually is those difficult but necessary things that come to mind when I ask Him that question. He usually never indicates to me, “Hey, go take a break and watch TV for a few hours or surf the internet.” That is not the kind of task He gives. Doing His will means giving up the things that I have taken pleasure in or used to satisfy my lazy or fleshly habits. And that is good.
Seeking His will is always good, even when we don’t like the answer that He gives us. Doing God’s will is always good, even if it feels like it is the last thing we want to do. The fact that it is difficult to submit to Him shows us a reflection of what we have become, self-serving, immature, disobedient, undisciplined children.
Note in the verse quoted above the results of being “filled with the knowledge of His will”. Incredible! Isn’t this list reflective of everything we want as Christians, to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in everything we do, and bear fruit for Him? I think many of us pray for these very things, and here is the key to being those kind of Christians who actually achieve those results: the knowledge of His will. I take this to mean the knowing at each moment of every day what He wants me to be doing, and doing it with diligence and thankfulness.
For many of us, this is the heart and soul of overcoming temptation and pleasing God. It all starts with knowing and doing His will. Have you committed yourself to finding out what God’s will is and doing it with diligence? Why not do so today, and ask God to give you this habit of seeking His will each and every day, throughout the day? What blessings He promises to those who do so!