CC - How do you know if God is "putting something on your heart"?

[Mommy22alyns]

How do you discern?

[Parrothead]

I don't actually call it that but I know when time and again the answer doesn't change even after much prayer and thought and maybe research.

[....]

I don't know what denomination you are...but there is a page on that in Lutheranism 101. I'll go find it and see what it says.

 

OK, the gist is...you have the Law, written clearly in Scripture and the Good News about Jesus. Beyond that, you have freedom to choose to do what you want. Don't listen to your heart for God's will for your life, look at God's Word.

 

That's probably a horrible rephrasing of this passage... Feel free to disagree with me...:D

[Jean in Newcastle]

I look to see if it is something consistent with Biblical principles and that it doesn't contradict anything in Scripture. Then I look at the other responsibilities that God has given me. I know 100% that God wants me to take care of my husband and children, for example. If that thing makes it impossible (not just a bit inconvenient) to take care of the things I know for sure are my responsibility, then I know that He wouldn't ask me to do it. Then I pray for wisdom and guidance. Sometimes that guidance comes from mature believers that I ask for advice from, sometimes not.

[Mommy22alyns]

I don't know what denomination you are...but there is a page on that in Lutheranism 101. I'll go find it and see what it says.

 

OK, the gist is...you have the Law, written clearly in Scripture and the Good News about Jesus. Beyond that, you have freedom to choose to do what you want. Don't listen to your heart for God's will for your life, look at God's Word.

 

That's probably a horrible rephrasing of this passage... Feel free to disagree with me...:D

 

 

I'm not any denomination. Here's the thing - what I'm wondering about isn't unbiblical by any means, but some people read the Bible this way and others don't.

[justamouse]

Like Chuckie, I research things and I can't shake it no matter how much I try. I never move on it quickly. And I take time to read what's going on around me. Coincidences will start happening that show up time and time again that make me realize I'm supposed to be looking over there. They're like small road signs.

 

One great example I heard was that a man was praying for a job, then he got two offered, both came with sacrifices. So he had to pray between the two, and he asked for a week to make the decision. He fasted, and while he was in a starcoffeestore a woman had lost her engagement ring, and he found it. Well, one of the companies had been named Diamond. That's a very basic jist of it, but when those small things start piling up, that's when I start walking down the road they're pointing to.

 

The hard part is that sometimes, we are so busy, so in our heads, that we don't take the time to slow down and 'see' the things that are happening. We fly right by them.

[jenL]

Like Chuckie, I research things and I can't shake it no matter how much I try. I never move on it quickly. And I take time to read what's going on around me. Coincidences will start happening that show up time and time again that make me realize I'm supposed to be looking over there. They're like small road signs.

 

One great example I heard was that a man was praying for a job, then he got two offered, both came with sacrifices. So he had to pray between the two, and he asked for a week to make the decision. He fasted, and while he was in a starcoffeestore a woman had lost her engagement ring, and he found it. Well, one of the companies had been named Diamond. That's a very basic jist of it, but when those small things start piling up, that's when I start walking down the road they're pointing to.

 

The hard part is that sometimes, we are so busy, so in our heads, that we don't take the time to slow down and 'see' the things that are happening. We fly right by them.

 

:iagree: Especially with the bolded part. It's for this reason that I try really hard to incorporate a daily Bible/prayer time each day where I am by myself, reading the Bible and praying over it. Often the passages I read in the Bible will coincide with something on my heart. This has happened numerous times where I've just opened the Bible and started reading. That's when I really know I need to start listening! :D

[danybug]

Like Chuckie, I research things and I can't shake it no matter how much I try. I never move on it quickly. And I take time to read what's going on around me. Coincidences will start happening that show up time and time again that make me realize I'm supposed to be looking over there. They're like small road signs.

 

One great example I heard was that a man was praying for a job, then he got two offered, both came with sacrifices. So he had to pray between the two, and he asked for a week to make the decision. He fasted, and while he was in a starcoffeestore a woman had lost her engagement ring, and he found it. Well, one of the companies had been named Diamond. That's a very basic jist of it, but when those small things start piling up, that's when I start walking down the road they're pointing to.

 

The hard part is that sometimes, we are so busy, so in our heads, that we don't take the time to slow down and 'see' the things that are happening. We fly right by them.

 

:iagree: I was really thinking how I would respond and then I read this post. It perfectly encompasses my thoughts.

[Tarreymere]

God has learned that I am very thick, so when He wants me to 'discern' something He tends to drag me along kicking and screaming all the way and just dump me headlong into whatever it is. Don't worry, if He is putting something on your heart He isn't going to stop until you finally figure it out, especially if He knows you are trying to listen.

[Sputterduck]

God has learned that I am very thick, so when He wants me to 'discern' something He tends to drag me along kicking and screaming all the way and just dump me headlong into whatever it is. Don't worry, if He is putting something on your heart He isn't going to stop until you finally figure it out, especially if He knows you are trying to listen.

 

Heh. Yeah. Me, too. I'm always very cautious, so God just keeps on with something 'til I get it. It takes me awhile.

 

Over time, I've learned how to tell the difference between my things and God's. Now I respond much quicker. I will say that God has never, ever, ever steered me wrong whatsoever. :)

[K&Rs Mom]

God has learned that I am very thick, so when He wants me to 'discern' something He tends to drag me along kicking and screaming all the way and just dump me headlong into whatever it is.

 

:iagree: Well put - this is how we ended up homeschooling, among other things. I know when I just can't escape it, when I keep looking for an "out" but everything is pointing me the same way. Sometimes it takes time (and prayer).

[Heather in Neverland]

There is a great book about this that really made an impact on me:

 

Just Do Something: How to Make a Decision Without Dreams, Visions, Fleeces, Open Doors, Random Bible Verses, Casting Lots, Liver Shivers, Writing in the Sky, etc... A Liberating Approach to Finding God's Will.

 

Hyper-spiritual approaches to finding God's will don't work. It's time to try something new: Give up. Pastor and author Kevin DeYoung counsels Christians to settle down, make choices, and do the hard work of seeing those choices through. Too often, he writes, God's people tinker around with churches, jobs, and relationships, worrying that they haven't found God's perfect will for their lives. Or—even worse—they do absolutely nothing, stuck in a frustrated state of paralyzed indecision, waiting . . . waiting . . . waiting for clear, direct, unmistakable direction.

 

But God doesn't need to tell us what to do at each fork in the road. He's already revealed his plan for our lives: to love him with our whole hearts, to obey His Word, and after that, to do what we like. No need for hocus-pocus. No reason to be directionally challenged. Just do something.

 

This has really helped me with making decisions...big and small... in life. So I no longer torture myself with "is this God's will? is that God's will?" I already KNOW God's will. Honor God in all I say and all I do...and obey His word. That's what He wants from us.

[Heather in OK]

When I know it's not me having the thought or impression.

[*Inna*]

Especially with the bolded part. It's for this reason that I try really hard to incorporate a daily Bible/prayer time each day where I am by myself, reading the Bible and praying over it. Often the passages I read in the Bible will coincide with something on my heart. This has happened numerous times where I've just opened the Bible and started reading. That's when I really know I need to start listening! :D

:iagree:

[Forget-Me-Not]

I usually try to weigh all the options, make a choice, then pray about it. If I'm anxious, confused, uncertain, then it's wrong. If I feel peaceful, happy, confident about moving forward, it's right.

 

I've also sometimes had sudden thoughts or inspirations that were not mine. Especially with regards to my kids.

[katemary63]

There is a great book about this that really made an impact on me:

 

Just Do Something: How to Make a Decision Without Dreams, Visions, Fleeces, Open Doors, Random Bible Verses, Casting Lots, Liver Shivers, Writing in the Sky, etc... A Liberating Approach to Finding God's Will.

 

Hyper-spiritual approaches to finding God's will don't work. It's time to try something new: Give up. Pastor and author Kevin DeYoung counsels Christians to settle down, make choices, and do the hard work of seeing those choices through. Too often, he writes, God's people tinker around with churches, jobs, and relationships, worrying that they haven't found God's perfect will for their lives. Or—even worse—they do absolutely nothing, stuck in a frustrated state of paralyzed indecision, waiting . . . waiting . . . waiting for clear, direct, unmistakable direction.

 

But God doesn't need to tell us what to do at each fork in the road. He's already revealed his plan for our lives: to love him with our whole hearts, to obey His Word, and after that, to do what we like. No need for hocus-pocus. No reason to be directionally challenged. Just do something.

 

This has really helped me with making decisions...big and small... in life. So I no longer torture myself with "is this God's will? is that God's will?" I already KNOW God's will. Honor God in all I say and all I do...and obey His word. That's what He wants from us.

 

:iagree: Sounds like a GREAT book! I pray. I ask for guidance. Then I think. Then I discuss it with my DH who has also prayed and asked God to guide us. The we decide, act and trust. We have a general attitude that God loves us, He's sovereign, all powerful and all wise. He is the ultimate Father and we are ultimately in His hands. So we don't agonize about what to do. We just do our best to be wise. If it is a particularily difficult situation, we may take a few extra days to think and pray.

 

There are times, though, when I feel that God wants me to pray about a very specific thing. It's not a voice or vision or dream. Its just a thought that seems to come from Him directly to me. So I do it. I see it as a private & personal thing. At those times I might think that God "laid something on my heart" but I never use that phrase in my daily life or conversation.

 

I would never tell someone else, "God put it on my heart to tell you *blank*" But I might share a scripture with them that seems to address a situation they may be in.

[Celia]

I guess I don't think about things quite like most on this. I trust God to provide, pray for wisdom, and try to follow the direction given in Scripture. But I don't think that just because something feels right, or that I feel peaceful about a decision that I'm making, that it's necessarily God's guidance. We are told in the Bible that our hearts are deceitful above all things. Fooling ourselves to believe that what we're doing is actually God's desire for us sounds all too easy to me! Sometimes the right decision will cause us a lot of anguish, and it's meant to be that way to develop our characters. There are numerous Biblical examples I could point to in order to illustrate this. But He does give us the broader picture to keep in mind, so that despite these light afflictions which are for but a moment, they work for us a more exceeding and eternal weight of glory (2 Cor. 4ish).

 

I do think God arranges our lives to help point us in the direction he wants us to go, answers prayers for wisdom, and provides us with the needed road map in his word. "Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path". I don't think he zaps ideas or decisions into our minds.

[katemary63]

Coincidences will start happening that show up time and time again that make me realize I'm supposed to be looking over there. They're like small road signs......

 

.....one of the companies had been named Diamond.

 

I personally, do my best NOT to look for "signs" like this. I've seen way too many people "follow" the coincidences and make OBVIOUSLY wrong decisons. I'm not saying its wrong for you and you are certainly not alone in this practice, but I would never take the diamond story as a "sign" from God. Never. To be totally honest, the more little "signs" I notice "pointing" me in a certain direction, the more I check myself, return to scripture and prayer and question my own motives in a situation. It is very easy to see what we want to see. I could tell you stories. :grouphug:

Edited March 24, 2011 by katemary63

[simka2]

I have to simplify. I ask myself, "What do I know about God? His Heart? Who He is?" Then if what is on my heart meets that intial requirement, I start to research the issue in earnest.

 

I do believe that God grants peace, but I also believe that it sometimes comes after I have put my foot on the path.

 

Take care!

[justamouse]

I personally, do my best NOT to look for "signs" like this. I've seen way too many people "follow" the coincidences and make OBVIOUSLY wrong decisons. I'm not saying its wrong for you and you are certainly not alone in this practice, but I would never take the diamond story as a "sign" from God. Never. To be totally honest, the more little "signs" I notice "pointing" me in a certain direction, the more I check myself, return to scripture and prayer and question my own motives in a situation. It is very easy to see what we want to see. I could tell you stories. :grouphug:

 

I'm sure you could tell me stories.

 

My way has never steered me wrong-when I listened. And, after not listening many, many times and getting myself into situations that had I paid attention (and in hindsight those road signs become crystal clear), I learned to listen the hard way. It's learning to hear that's the hard part.

 

It's not hocus pocus, it's learning to listen and pay attention. Sometimes looking back after a particularly rough situation-looking to see what I missed- is a good way of learning discernment.

Edited March 24, 2011 by justamouse

[Georgiana Daniels]

If we're talking about God putting something in the heart that isn't specifically in Scripture (call so-and-so or that type of thing) then I feel it's Him when it keeps coming up. Odd times, here and there, and then the idea comes up again and again. Basically, if the idea won't let me go and it lines up with the Word, then I know it's a holy nudge.

[sharon family school]

Stay in the Word diligently and PRAY.

Also, I always have to remind myself that "waiting" is usually the rule. Much of the time in our lives we get red lights from God, but when He gives you a green light...go like mad! (from a Chuch Swindoll sermon) My husband and I have used this in our lives MANY times and it works!

Praying for you,

Susan

[Mimm]

I'm very cynical when someone says that God is leading them in a particular direction. I've seen people in my own life make decisions that they believed with absolutely unshakable conviction came from God. And it's ended in disaster. I'm talking about people in my own family, and these decisions have exploded all over my life. I've seen this absolutely shatter people's faith. My own faith has been very negatively impacted. Because if someone can be SO sure, and wrong, then what's the point of trying to discern God's will?

 

Personally, I try to make the best decisions based on a moral right and wrong, I pray for wisdom in making those decisions. Once the decision is made I will pray for God's blessings. But I don't actually ask him to show me which way I should go. I fear convincing myself that I have God's "stamp of approval". Once you have that, what happens when you start to think that maybe it was the wrong decision? You have to persevere because you can't just go against God's leading. What happens when it's a complete and unmitigated disaster? You're left wondering if God was a sadist to lead you in this direction or if you completely mistook his leading. It can be so damaging...