What is the will of God for your life? Have you heard the story of the doctor who comes to a split in the road on a Vermont backcountry lane? The road sign at the fork points in both directions for the same town. Seeing a farmer beside the road, he asked him, “Does it matter which road I take to get to town?” The farmer replies, “Not to me, it don’t.”

God’s direction for you may not matter to others, but it is very important to you.

A story is told of two men who worked in the audit department of a large bank. They made an overnight trip to a distant branch of the bank and were dining in a local restaurant. The chief auditor told the other man, “First, we’ll hit the tellers and then get the vault.”

They arrived at the bank the next morning, only to be promptly arrested by the state police. Upon inquiry, they discovered that a police captain had eaten at the same restaurant and had overheard the conversation about “hitting the tellers and getting the vault.” The police captain had made a very good assumption about the situation based on the information as he had overheard it, but his assumption was also very wrong.

So how can we avoid making false assumptions when we seek the mind of the Lord?

We must understand that knowing God’s will is not a road map, not a direction; it is not an assumption. Knowing God’s will is very simple. If you are going to know God’s will for your life, you have to do two things.

First of all, to know God’s will you have to know God. You have to have a relationship with Him. You cannot know God’s will if you don’t know God. You cannot see the kingdom of God working in your life if you don’t know the King. You cannot understand the things of God if you don’t trust in Jesus Christ, whom God has sent. If you aren’t willing to accept Jesus Christ’s payment for your sins, it is impossible for you to know Him and to know His will.

Secondly, if you want to know God’s will, you have to follow the Son. The Beatles wrote a song entitled “I’ll Follow the Sun.” One line is “for tomorrow may rain so I’ll follow the sun…” meaning I’ll follow the bright path and leave the dreary way behind, then I will find my way. That’s what Jesus wants us to do: Leave the dark path and follow the SON and you will find THE WAY.

The way is a person. The will of God is found in a person. If you follow Jesus you have found the will of God. The will of God is a journey, not a destination. You will discover the will of God as you discover Jesus Christ by walking with Him each day.

If you have been married for a while you know what makes your spouse happy, you know what makes them sad, you know what makes them anxious and you know what makes them mad. Why is that? Because being together for so many years brings a close, personal relationship. In a sense you are following your spouse. That means you take care to observe them so you will better know how to please them. You know without asking what your spouse will have you do in almost every situation because you know your spouse.

Because you follow your spouse, you observe your spouse, you know the will of your spouse. Knowing God’s will works the same way. John 10:27-28: “My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me. I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish.” Follow the Son and you will know the will of God for your life.

Watch sermons and read sermon texts and other articles online at www.tomahawkmbc.com. Listen to Pastor Jack Ward’s sermons on WSIP FM 98.9 every Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Watch his sermons on his Facebook page.