Wholehearted commitment

Yesterday a dear friend told me about another young woman who has learned to talk with God about everything. Large or small, for her all matters and decisions are prayer concerns.

I was impressed. No one does that unless they have realized two things: first, that in their own weakness and inability they will fail to make the best choices, and second, that God’s thoughts are not our thoughts. No matter how good our intentions, His will is always superior and worth seeking.

This morning’s devotional reading is about having my life dedicated to Him. The verse says,

And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. (Colossians 3:17)

Doing something in the name of another means doing it as the other person’s representative. This is not about my will, ideas, or wishes. It is about doing the will of God, and like this young woman has learned, that means going to Him and finding out what His will is.

I’ve heard people despair over this, moaning, “Oh, if I just knew the will of God on this . . .” as if He is hiding it from them. That isn’t the picture I get from my experience, or from Scripture. The Bible says,

The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law. (Deuteronomy 29:29)

God will reveal even His secrets. He wants me to obey Him, and how can I do it if I don’t know what He is asking me to do?

For me, the perplexity of not knowing His will is tied up with my attitude. If I have my mind made up about what I want to do and am looking for God’s rubber stamp on it, then He may keep me in the dark. If I have already decided or assumed what He wants, I’m also not ready to obey Him.

God knows my heart. He also knows if I am ready to do what He says, yet this goes two ways. I need to obey what I already know before He gives me more information. I need to do the work (or spiritual disciplines) of turning from the world’s ideas (and mine), and spend time in His Word getting my mind renewed. Otherwise, how will I recognize the will of God when it is revealed to me?

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:1-2, NIV)

The previously mentioned young woman reveals her commitment to doing the will of God by holding off all decisions and actions until He clearly shows her what He wants. This is the secret of doing “all in the name of the Lord Jesus” and just another example of what I want to be when I grow up.