How do you know you are fulfilling God's will for your life?

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How do you know if you are doing what God has planned for your life? Will you feel a sense of peace? Or should we always be striving for something new to add to our life? How do you know if you are “on the right track”?
 
Great questions.

I have often thought this myself…Overall, in a general sense, when we are serving God and others…putting others’ needs before our own…that will always be God’s ultimate purpose for our lives. Whether you become a priest, nun, policeman, teacher, corporate CEO, etc…you can take those principles and apply them–daily. I have often thought that life isn’t about always getting to a destination, although we often make it that way–it’s more about trusting Jesus along the way–to help us when we fear what His plans are for us. I’m sure Noah had doubts, so did Moses. But, they trusted God. And in that trusting, their lives’ purposes were fulfilled.

So–if you are serving God and others…putting your own desires last…always giving of yourself…you can bet, that whatever vocation God has placed you in/you have chosen, that you are living your life in His purpose and will.

Hope that helps?🙂

PS: I’m relocating to Florida, and I’ve been fearful to an extent. But, this opportunity with my job sort of came out of the blue…my husband has been wanting to move back to Florida for some time, and I just never thought we could ‘do it.’ But, then, last year, this opportunity to relocate me back to Florida through my employer (a great oppty that God planted in my path, I might add) is paving the way for us to move back to Florida. That in mind, I get a sense of peace mixed with angst, but in it all…I will serve God and my family/friends/coworkers/parishioners/ wherever I may reside. I often pray before going to sleep…‘God, please enable me to do your will …serve you and others…no matter where it is that you place me. I will be grateful, and will lean on your understanding.’
 
I think that there is a certain something to finding peace. That isn’t to say that there won’t be struggles, frustration, hardship, need for growth. But when you know that you’re following the right path, there can be, perhaps, a degree of confidence that this is “right”. One might also look at such things as whether you’re heading in a direction where there is opportunity to do something positive or if you’re just banging your head against a wall. Are you able to employ your talents in a way which brings contentment? And, naturally, are you staying true to the faith?
 
For me that is an ongoing process. I felt a call on my life to ministry as a clergyman. That process took a long time. At first I thought that I was side tracked but looking back I realize that all of the experiences I have had in the military and so on have helped form me (clay analogy).

I think the main thing is to be in prayer for God’s will in your life. He will open the necessary doors. Trust, obey and do all that you do unto the Lord. It is the “bloom where you are planted” philosophy. If you are open to Him he will put you where He wants you for your good and the service of others. It is as Paul says in his Epistle about the secret of contentment!

I do not know what you are seeking but Fr. Corapi came to the priesthood later in life and has been used powerfully by God. Marcus Grodi has a ministry in the Catholic Church as a layman that is powerful (used to be a Protestant clergyman) and so on.

May God give you discernment as you seek His will.

North
 
This is a wonderful question. I think and pray about this all the time and I had recently been having a difficult time. I felt like I wasn’t hearing God; maybe I wasn’t speaking to Him enough or maybe I wasn’t listening to Him enough. I spoke with one of our priests about it, and his advice was really reassuring. I don’t necessarily have to be doing something grand, but rather can learn from St. Therese of Lisieux and be doing little things. I’m a mother and work part-time, and doing my best in all things, great and small, is part of what I am called to do. This has really helped me.
 
This is a question that I have been asking myself for a year and a half. I was discerning the priesthood, not very positive experience for me. I always wanted to train Dressage horses and that has been an uphill battle as far as oppertunities have been concerned. I learned to play the banjo and oppertunities for that have been hard. I don’t know what God wants. I finally found a place that I am riding Dressage at, I have been in South Dakota(LOVED it there), didn’t want to go to Washington DC, I am here and this is where I am riding at, I now have to leave in two months and don’t know what to do. I tell God that I can’t take anymore of this uncertainty. I tell him either let me have the priesthood horses or music (wish I could play organ so i can play for my church) and I just don’t know what he wants out of me. I travel all over the country working at government contracts. I cant stand the DC area, but the horse thing is happening here. I am most likely going to head back to Missouri to start a business with my father (my luck track record scares me). I still see a shortage of priests in the church. I tell Jesus here I am, in church they say pray for more vocations, I say to myself here I am Lord, I guess in a nut shell I am so confused and I thought i knew what God wanted that it was all sewn up, WRONG!!! I guess I may find out what he wants someday,tired of worrying about it right now. Scoob.
 
I’ll just add that I’m not sure we can know w/ 100% certainty. If we could, there would be no room for our free ‘yes’. —KCT
 
I just posted a new thread, but might as well have come here. I am struggling with much of what is posted here - being content in what you are doing, questioning what it is I am to be doing, not finding fulfillment in it. And finally after years of fighting it, acknowledging that God is calling me to be a deacon.

My struggle now as I discern for this is that while I know with all of my heart this is what God wants, it has never been what I’ve wanted. So I am moving towards doing God’s will in spite of myself, but I am struggling terribly with being unfulfilled in this life. I settled with that for a while, that everything that has happened in life has brought me to this point, but fear - not doubt - has raised its ugly head again. I am attributing that to the devil at this point.

So how do you find peace in doing what God wants you to do when it isn’t what you want to do?

I will humbly ask for all the prayers I can get.
 
So how do you find peace in doing what God wants you to do when it isn’t what you want to do?

Something I have to remind myself all the time: it’s easy to think that you are the only person who knows yourself best. You know what you like, you know what you don’t like, you think you know what will fulfill you. However, God MADE you. He designed your body, your personality, your gifts, he made your brain. He is the creator of YOU, so, would you rather try to figure out yourself what fulfills you, or would you rather let the designer of you give you what he planned and KNOWS will fulfill you. I get peace when I just sit back and say, Okay, God, here. Here is my life. But it’s hard at the same time because you have give up control. But again, God knows the future, he knows our strengths, weaknesses, desires, everything, so I’d rather let Him be in control of my life rather than myself, who really doesn’t know all that much!
 
scoobydoo6v92 said:
This is a question that I have been asking myself for a year and a half. I was discerning the priesthood, not very positive experience for me. I always wanted to train Dressage horses and that has been an uphill battle as far as oppertunities have been concerned. I learned to play the banjo and oppertunities for that have been hard. I don’t know what God wants. I finally found a place that I am riding Dressage at, I have been in South Dakota(LOVED it there), didn’t want to go to Washington DC, I am here and this is where I am riding at, I now have to leave in two months and don’t know what to do. I tell God that I can’t take anymore of this uncertainty. I tell him either let me have the priesthood horses or music (wish I could play organ so i can play for my church) and I just don’t know what he wants out of me. I travel all over the country working at government contracts. I cant stand the DC area, but the horse thing is happening here. I am most likely going to head back to Missouri to start a business with my father (my luck track record scares me). I still see a shortage of priests in the church. I tell Jesus here I am, in church they say pray for more vocations, I say to myself here I am Lord, I guess in a nut shell I am so confused and I thought i knew what God wanted that it was all sewn up, WRONG!!! I guess I may find out what he wants someday,tired of worrying about it right now. Scoob.
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You love horses or being outside or ??? Reason is, I have a thought…
 
It is difficult to discern His Will - both in doing more and doing less. I’m still trying to find the balance He wants for me. I found Cardinal Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan’s discussion of discerning between God and God’s works in his book Five Loaves & Two Fish a helpful reflection.

ScoobyDoo6v92 - If you haven’t already done so, before you leave DC, I would suggest you contact the Archdiocesan Vocations Office (adw.org/vocations/priesthood.asp)). The director is a wonderful priest.
 
searching06 said:
So how do you find peace in doing what God wants you to do when it isn’t what you want to do?
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Maybe you should re-evaluate. Maybe what you think He wants is not what He wants. Maybe you’re just wrong in discerning God’s will for you. Maybe the misery that you are feeling is a God given sign that this is the wrong option for you.

I’m not talking about dealing with the basic sufferings of life (like the death of a loved one, etc.), or the rough spots in a marriage, or the normal sacrifice that’s required for anything worthwhile.

I’m talking about bad marriages: abuse, neglect, etc.

I’m also talking about bad discernment of a religious vocation.

I’m talking about when people are miserable in a situation, but they stick with it because they think they must, in order to be loving and selfless. And, up to a point, maybe they are right. But, after a certain point, maybe sticking with it is the wrong thing to do; and maybe the misery is the obvious sign that this is not right for you.

I remember a vocation director telling me that God’s will is our happiness and fulfillment.

I used to scoff at that. I used to think that God’s will is for us to heroically suffer. And, sometimes it is: for example, during a terminal illness (in oneself or in a loved one).

But, generally, God doesn’t want us to suffer.

Generally, God wants us to be happy – here as well as hereafter. He gave us our talents and our likes and dislikes as indications of how we are to be happy. Yes, we frequently have to overcome our selfish tendencies in order to be good. But, that doesn’t mean negating or going against our basic nature of who we are. God made us as we are, and He pronounced us good.

What he calls us to is simply the fulfillment of the work He started when He created us; and it will make us happy. Sure, there will be sacrifice along the way and hardships and even sufferings. But, when you’re on the right track, it won’t be non-stop sufferings, hardships, repugnance and misery. That’s a sign that you are probably on the wrong track: for picking a religious vocation or for picking a mate. Instead, the right track will be a good fit for your strengths and weaknesses, your talents and personality, and will seem to be desirable to you because it seems to be made for you.

In short, it dawned upon me that Christ meant what He said: “I have come to give you joy, that your joy may be complete.” Note what makes you filled with repugnance and disquiet, and (usually) avoid that. Note instead what fills you with attraction and peace, and (usually) go after that. Explore and discern. Find your joy; and you will take another step closer to finding your vocation. And then, use the same process to narrow down your options once you have found the general area for service that is right for you.

Just my two cents worth, from someone who has been there. :cool:
 
When I finally answered my calling to the diaconate…I cannot tell you the joy in my life. I get recharged everytime I think about it too. I am on fire for Christ and I love:) sharing that with everyone I meet!
 
I am at a point where I am at my whit’s end. I have tried and tried to discern his call for my life. All I know is that I am getting older and older, Days are getting drier and drier. I am at the point that God needs to tell me in laymen’s terms. I am tired of these games. I say “maybe God wants me to be a priest” no “maybe God wants me to be a music director or musician for my parish” nope “maybe God wants me to have a family and” nope not so far . I have to talk to the vocations director in St Louis. I am so gun shy that I have put it off for a while. I am literally affraid to call him, I am tired of being rejected. There comes a time in your life where you finally say screw it. I give up. Some people say that is when God has you where he wants you. Broke ready to listen. Well I am at the point I want him to directly tell me what he has planned for me and I am not taking no for an answer. Forgive me it just has been a real bad week and today is the worse of it. Scoob.
 
scoobydoo6v92 said:
I am at a point where I am at my whit’s end. I have tried and tried to discern his call for my life. All I know is that I am getting older and older, Days are getting drier and drier. I am at the point that God needs to tell me in laymen’s terms. I am tired of these games. I say “maybe God wants me to be a priest” no “maybe God wants me to be a music director or musician for my parish” nope “maybe God wants me to have a family and” nope not so far . I have to talk to the vocations director in St Louis. I am so gun shy that I have put it off for a while. I am literally affraid to call him, I am tired of being rejected. There comes a time in your life where you finally say screw it. I give up. Some people say that is when God has you where he wants you. Broke ready to listen. Well I am at the point I want him to directly tell me what he has planned for me and I am not taking no for an answer. Forgive me it just has been a real bad week and today is the worse of it. Scoob.
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I have prayed for you, and I have asked the Mother of God to pray for you too. Get some rest; get a good meal; take a fresh look at it tomorrow.
 
Whenever I get myself into a period of confusion…my wife says make an appt with your spiritual director. It really makes a difference in my life. If you have one make an appt., and if you don’t consider getting one. I will keep you in my prayers.
 
I wonder if it has anything to do with being “at peace.” Sometimes God wants hard things from us - sometimes it is a sacrifice to fulfil his plans for our lives. Here I am, studying in a foreign country, but there are red flags indicating I am ruining my life by taking hold of a (seemingly) God-given opportunity and using my talents. I have been ill so long, I am feeling miserable - yet there is no other direction, no other choice for me to take.
I am wavering between starting over and simply enduring and waiting - perhaps God will make it clear whether this is the road He wants me to travel, or should I leave and choose an easier life without illness and mental turbulence.
It requires lots of patience to find out God’s plans…
 
scoobydoo6v92 said:
I am at a point where I am at my whit’s end. I have tried and tried to discern his call for my life. All I know is that I am getting older and older, Days are getting drier and drier. I am at the point that God needs to tell me in laymen’s terms. I am tired of these games. I say “maybe God wants me to be a priest” no “maybe God wants me to be a music director or musician for my parish” nope “maybe God wants me to have a family and” nope not so far . I have to talk to the vocations director in St Louis. I am so gun shy that I have put it off for a while. I am literally affraid to call him, I am tired of being rejected. There comes a time in your life where you finally say screw it. I give up. Some people say that is when God has you where he wants you. Broke ready to listen. Well I am at the point I want him to directly tell me what he has planned for me and I am not taking no for an answer. Forgive me it just has been a real bad week and today is the worse of it. Scoob.
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Whenever I get confused…I pay a visit to my spiritual director. If you have one…make a visit. If you don’t consider getting one. It makes all the difference in the world to me and hopefully you will derive the same spiritual and mental health benefits I do.
 
westcoast said:
How do you know if you are doing what God has planned for your life? Will you feel a sense of peace? Or should we always be striving for something new to add to our life? How do you know if you are “on the right track”?
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There are different levels of knowing God’s will.

The first is the approval of the Church of your state of life. This could be marriage, priesthood or consecrated life. The Church is a witness to the certainty these normal ways to sanctity. When one makes his vow , marriage, priesthood, or consecrated life. there is a 100% certainty of your calling. Before this you would have a moral certainty as you progress to a state in life.

According to St. Thomas Aqu. God calls to the higher calling first because it is the best way to save one’s soul and those of others.
Often we think of our vocation as ours alone but other souls lay in the balance. What would have happened if St. Francis Xavier(sp?) didnt follow his vocation would the people of India had to have waited 30 or 100 years more for the life giving sacraments?

God’s calling is not always full of peace. St. Theresa of Avila hated her vocation in the begining but knew it was the best way to save her soul.
 
A very intriguing question indeed !
Well, I guess all of us know the general will of God for all…Love God with all our heart,soul,mind and strength. Love your neighbour as yourself. ( I have to love myself also…) If you love Me, you will keep my commandments…and the Lord’s wonderful promise that …“My Father and I will come and make our home in you.” Hence, there is peace. a peace the world cannot give, which we can’t buy with money…that flows and overflows in our hearts. Sometimes we are faced with decisions…and as I learnt from a holy priest, to discern the will of God that the decision that brings you the most peace is His Holy will.
 
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