Vagueness

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Why is God’s will for us so vague? If God had one course of action that he wanted us to take, wouldn’t he make it more clear? The methods that people commonly suggest to determine God’s will (pray and look for an answer, read the Bible, read spiritual literature, consult with a priest, have a discussion with a spiritual direction, etc.) all seem to be open to interpretation. I’m not asking for a booming voice from the sky telling me what to do, but simply a sure way of knowing what God’s will is.

The only answer to this question I can think of is that God clearly stated his moral guidelines for us, such as loving one’s neighbor and the 10 commandments. But the specifics about what we do with our life, who we form relationships with, where we work, and how we live, God leaves to us to decide as long as we are following his moral guidelines.
 
It’s not what people don’t know
that causes them to waste their talents,
and ultimately, their lives
…
It’s their
“suspension of disbelief”
that allows them to accept
illusion as reality
 
quote: Awake
I’m not asking for a booming voice from the sky telling me what to do, but simply a sure way of knowing what God’s will is.
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Was thinking about this, recently, Awake.

quote:reen12, from another thread
There is also an anecdote, from Eastern thought,
that one might find applicable - in terms of what
God wishes me to do, in life.
A young student of Zen - who wished to be taught,
with all of his heart, asked the *roshi *- a Zen master,
and an elderly man:
“Master, how am I to learn Zen?”
“Have you finished your breakfast?”
“Yes.”
“Wash your bowls.”

i10.photobucket.com/albums/a1…hyourbowls.jpg

That anecdote puts me in mind of what Father Groeschel has said.
“Take the next good step.”

If our feet trod on the path limned by both the spiritual and the corporal works of mercy,
while following His ten commandments, carrying out - each day - the duties of our state in life,
[married, single, religious life] we please Him.

What must I do to follow Him, and to know His will?
[In my own case, at the moment:]
“Have you made lunch yet?”
"No, I haven’t. bestsmileys.com/nono/9.gif
“Go make lunch.”
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There may be a connection - between staying in the presence
of God, during our day, and knowing His will for each of us.
I don’t know that this is true, but I think so.

Brother Lawrence had his own ‘little way’ - of staying in His
presence. Nothing complex or complicated, which is why I
think highly of Brother Lawrence.

The Practice of the Presence of God is online.

gutenberg.org/etext/5657

Maybe it’s easier to hear His ‘still, small voice,’ if we
accustom ourselves to being in His presence, often.
Brother Lawrence describes how he was able to practice
the presence of God, even during his busy days.

I think, too, that the varied duties, of our state in life
[married, single, religious life] give us solid ‘clues’ - as
to that which God wishes us to be doing. That’s what
Brother Lawrence did. He addressed, daily, the duties
that were his - as a member of a religious community.

The other thing is this: I find that, when I am fulfilling the
obligations of my state in life - while ‘practicing’ remaining
in His presence, as I can - that I do not have as much anxiety, about what His will for me is, on a given day - if that makes any sense. http://bestsmileys.com/nono/9.gif

God walk with each of us, always, as we make our way back to Him -
to live in His presence, in joy eternal.

reen12
 
Awake said:
Why is God’s will for us so vague? If God had one course of action that he wanted us to take, wouldn’t he make it more clear? The methods that people commonly suggest to determine God’s will (pray and look for an answer, read the Bible, read spiritual literature, consult with a priest, have a discussion with a spiritual direction, etc.) all seem to be open to interpretation. I’m not asking for a booming voice from the sky telling me what to do, but simply a sure way of knowing what God’s will is.

The only answer to this question I can think of is that God clearly stated his moral guidelines for us, such as loving one’s neighbor and the 10 commandments. But the specifics about what we do with our life, who we form relationships with, where we work, and how we live, God leaves to us to decide as long as we are following his moral guidelines.
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You answer the question correctly in the last paragraph here. God’s will for us, is to follow the two commandments Jesus gave us, “Love God with our entire being, and love our neighbors as we love ourself.” These two, sum up the 10 commandments.

Following these two commandments and you will be following God’s will.

Jim
 
Mother Angelica once said, “If you want to know God’s will for you, look around you and see where you are now.”
 
JimR-OCDS said:
You answer the question correctly in the last paragraph here. God’s will for us, is to follow the two commandments Jesus gave us, “Love God with our entire being, and love our neighbors as we love ourself.” These two, sum up the 10 commandments.

Following these two commandments and you will be following God’s will.

Jim
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Amen.
 
My take on it is that God, like a loving parent, will sometimes have a plethora of good things He could give us, and will allow us to make the choice from among them 🙂

At other times they won’t all be good, but He’ll trust us to be able to distinguish the bad from the good.
 
God’s will is clear cut and unambiguous and OP has capsulized it nicely. If you love Me you will keep My commands. Take up your cross and follow Me.

What is your cross? the next best step. the duty that lies nearest at hand. do the dishes, scrub the sink, sweep the floor, get the family ready for church, go to Mass, make lunch etc. Whatever the duties are today.
 
More wise words from Mother Angelica:
Many ask the question, “How do I know this is God’s Will for me?” The answer is simply, "If it is happening, it is God’s will. It is not relevant whether it is His ordaining or permitting Will, nothing happens to us that He has not seen beforehand, pondered the good we would derive from it and put upon it His stamp of approval.
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Read more:
Excerpts from TWO WILLS—HIS AND MINE
 
beckycmarie said:
More wise words from Mother Angelica:

Read more:
Excerpts from TWO WILLS—HIS AND MINE
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Mother Angelica Quote:
Many ask the question, “How do I know this is God’s Will for me?” The answer is simply, "If it is happening, it is God’s will. It is not relevant whether it is His ordaining or permitting Will, nothing happens to us that He has not seen beforehand, pondered the good we would derive from it and put upon it His stamp of approval.
Click to expand...
…👍 …

God’s Will is so simple, that perhaps we complex humanity can miss it perhaps. God’s Will is simply to avoid sin and resist temptation…all else is His Will. In this way we will grow to love God with our whole being and our neighbour as ourselves.
Sometimes what can stumble one is the concept “grow”…no overnight saints, short of the miraculous…and we can want to be instant saints.

If one is unsure on the subject of sin and resisting temptation, one speaks to a priest or director…this is called “discerning” or “discernment”.

Blessings…Barb:)
 
The only SURE way to know God’s Will… is to obey His commandments, in the course of our day to day lives. All of them. But, we must keep in mind, that God will never, ever interfer with our “free will”. We have to choose to obey His commandments… which ARE His Will.

There is another part of the equation. And that is trust in God’s Providence. Trusting that Our Lord is leading you in the direction He wants you to go. For example: if you’re working through school, to become a teacher. The probability that it is God’s Will… is very good. However, His Providence… might lead you into a field of study which you hadn’t intended… or in which you weren’t previously interested. It’s amazing, how He works in our lives.

I sometimes think, that God likes surprises 😃
 
Quoting MarieVeronica:
I sometimes think, that God likes surprises 😃
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Our God of The Surprise!👍 God’s Will unfolds in the days…what is dark, mysterious, to us now, may well be light, understanding, to us tomorrow and virtue of God’s Permissive Will and His Faithful Loving Care and Mercy guiding us through His Holy Spirit in the Footsteps of Jesus through our journey…
Dear Father, through The Holy Spirit and in the name of Your Son, may we live the circumstances of our own daily lives You have gifted us here as if Jesus were to live these precise same daily circumstances…Amen.
 
If you’re really interested, I’d suggest seeing if there’s a Disciples of Jesus and Mary group in your area.

DJM is a part of Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity (to which Fr. Corapi belongs). It is a three-part discipleship process, and the first part guides you through the process of discovering God’s Plan of Life for you. It is fully in line with the Church, totally orthodox, and amazing.

If you’re curious, you can visit the website at www.solt.org Click on the “Disciples of Jesus and Mary” tab on the left, and see if there’s a group near you. If there’s not, the closest group can have you as a satellite member, and conference call their meetings with you.
 
IMO God wants to see-and for us to learn- how we’ll live our lives without His presence immediately here. The message of Adam & Eve is that mankind rejected God. Will we still reject Him now, after seeing how the world is when man’s will reigns supreme? I think we already know He’s there- and our faith reminds us of it in more precise terms-and both justice and love demand that we believe in and love Him, while His love continues to allow us the freedom to reject Him anyway.
 
Awake said:
Why is God’s will for us so vague? If God had one course of action that he wanted us to take, wouldn’t he make it more clear?
Click to expand...
He did. He gave us the Catholic Church so that you wouldn’t have to figure it out on your own.
 
It`s very sad to realize that God’s Will was that you should just be there…
 
tessi said:
It`s very sad to realize that God’s Will was that you should just be there…
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i guess that some people (like me) want to be active participants, rather than just passively accepting what is thrown at them. maybe it is human nature, but many people just don’t feel comfortable not actively pursuing/producing something. prayer and good works are producing “treasure in heaven”, but since this treasure is unseen/intangible, it doesn’t feel like we are producing anything.
 
bpbasilphx said:
Mother Angelica once said, “If you want to know God’s will for you, look around you and see where you are now.”
Click to expand...
this is a truly helpful quote, but there is the additional question of “where do i go from here?”. please forgive me if i misinterpret the question from ‘Awake’, but i think the question is about wanting to do exactly God’s will. if there are two or more choices open to us, how do we know which one is the “better” choice? how do we know which choice most conforms to God’s will?
 
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