Can a teen really know God's will?

...or is life like rolling the dice?

...You just get what comes up?

Young Daniel had seen and experienced the horror of a foreign invasion as the fierce Babylonian army breached the walls of Jerusalem and overtook the city. He along with other young princes was taken forcibly from his family and began the long 800-mile trek through desert country to his new home in Babylon. Daniel was now away from his family, in a strange land with a new language. He had witnessed the iron power of his captors and if he desired to live, he had better completely obey their wishes. As he and his fellow Jewish princes sat down for their first Babylonian meal, he realized he had a major choice to make–to obey God’s law in what he ate, or just ignore God’s law and eat the king’s meat and drink to keep peace. Daniel 1:8 states "But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself."

As a teenage boy, Daniel took a stand that could have easily cost his life over what food he ate. His parents were not there to watch him and tell him what to do. During his formative years, Daniel had learned God’s law for the Jewish people, and he had taken it to heart as God’s will for his life. He had a purpose in his youth that went beyond his next meal or what appealed to his flesh. Knowing and obeying God’s revealed will was the most important thing to him as a youth and for the remainder of his life!

Knowing God’s will does not need to be a complicated matter. It is not something that only an elite few can know. God has a perfect will for every single person regardless of age, race, education, or background.

As with Daniel, the first thing that should concern you is to learn God’s revealed will in the Word of God. For example: 1Thess. 4:3 "For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication." This makes it very clear that it is God’s will for each of us to remain morally pure. We are also admonished in 1Thess. 5:18 that it is God’s will that we give thanks in every situation. The Word of God is full of commandments, principles, and warnings that are all part of God’s revealed will for every child of God. Are you taking heed to God’s Word in order to fulfill His revealed will? This requires daily Bible reading, memorization, study, and meditation. There are no short cuts. If you are not seriously learning and obeying God’s revealed will in your daily living, such as obeying and honoring your parents, then do not expect the Lord to reveal His plans for your life for your future.

The Apostle Paul sought to obey God’s revealed will in his life in spreading the Gospel and starting new churches on his missionary journeys. As Paul was in the way, obeying the Lord each step of the way, the Lord made his will clear to Paul that He did not want Paul to go to Asia, Acts 16:7. The point is that Paul did not sit around waiting to know God’s will for his life. He obeyed God’s revealed will and then the Lord guided him each step of the way.

It is important to keep your heart and mind right with the Lord. An unclear conscience, corrupt heart, or mind that is filled with the things of this world will cloud your perception of God’s will. Remember these three admonitions as you seek to know and obey God’s will in your youth:

1. Obey God’s will as found in the Word of God

2. Seek God’s face in prayer

3. Walk in the Spirit (Be sensitive to His promptings, not grieving or quenching the Holy Spirit.)

My young friend, please do not attempt to determine God’s will for your life based on what you think is right, or on popular opinion or on what your peers think. You must let Bible truth, commandment and principle guide you each step of the way. You must seek God’s face each day and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Psalms 43:3 "O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me..."

Submitted by:

Don Williams

Senior Pastor, Believers Baptist Church

Principal, Believers Baptist Academy

Assistant Director, Hephzibah House for Girls

508 School Street

Winona Lake, Indiana 46590

 Phone: 574-269-2376