Five Keys To Speeding Up God’s Will In Your Life

Remember the Israelites fresh out of Egypt in Exodus 13:17-18:

“When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, ‘Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.’ But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle.“

In the case of the Israelites, it was their fear and distrust of Yehovah to bring them through the battle that caused Yehovah to take them the long way to Mt. Sinai. 

The fact is that he is bringing his will all of the time, even when we don’t realize it. But I’m impatient, always praying for God to bring his will for my life as quickly as possible.  As a result, I found several ways that I could more fully cooperate with him and minimize delays, at least as far as it was up to me.

Not long ago I was on a year-long difficult journey. God was so faithful to me, and he gave me an extensive word of encouragement that I wrote down. That word got me through three of the worst months. I posted it beside my bed, I recorded it on my phone, I practically had it memorized. I read it or listened to it at least twice each day during those months. It wasn’t until about 2 ½ months in that I really focused on one sentence: “I’m bringing things to you as quickly as you can handle them.” “Aha!” I thought, “that means I have some influence in how quickly he can move. Some of this must be dependent on me.” So I prayed that he would prepare me to handle more. What could I do to be ready to move ahead more quickly?

1. Ask God to Prepare You for Your Future

The first thing I did was to begin writing down anything I had heard from Yehovah about preparing for my future. I don’t need to know what my future is. In fact, he and I have an agreement that he won’t show me too far ahead, and I won’t take matters into my own hands to make it happen. I’ve learned that the hard way.

So this was my first step: asking God to prepare me for my future and then taking down his instruction and digging in to find out what it means and do it. I had to remember that the instructions were about my future. They aren’t things I was already doing. In my case there were eight items that I could already think of that he had told me, so I set aside time every week to focus on those eight things and be diligent in pursuing them.

2. Focus on Hearing Yehovah

That process requires that I’m hearing God on a regular basis, preferably every day if I want to fully cooperate. So I set aside time every day, specifically every night, to just focus on the still small voice inside me, just being silent, inviting God to speak to me and staying open to however he wanted to do that. It might be a picture, it might be one word, it might be a reminder of something or it may seem like a stray thought that is actually his prompting. He can open your mind in an instant with just a word. 

Devote some time every day with no distractions to just listen for that one word.  Our daily bread is “every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” Then write it down, keep it in your heart, and incorporate it into your path.

3. Daily Confession and Cleansing

I found that what helped me hear Yehovah better is my confession, and his cleansing.

“Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully.” Psalm 24:3-4

In order to draw as close as we can to him, in his holy place, in his presence, we must be clean. Even if we have no specific sin to confess, just living in this fallen world can defile us. In order to keep ourselves clean, we must take on Yeshua’s holy blood and ask for forgiveness and cleansing. Doing this daily allows us to stay as close as possible to him every day.

“For your name’s sake, O Lord, pardon my guilt, for it is great. Who is the man who fears the Lord? Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose.” Psalm 25:11-12

I started asking for his cleansing every night at the end of the day.  Psalm 51:1-3 and 10-12 has become part of my nightly routine.  With that and my quiet time of listening each night, Yehovah and I have covered a lot of ground quickly.  If I awake in the night, I continue listening; when I wake in the morning, I review anything I might have heard. Sometimes I wake up early to record it in my journal.  Yehovah loves our diligence in seeking him.

“’For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,’ declares the Lord,” Jeremiah 29:11-14a

4. Obey and Adjust Immediately

Once you hear his voice, act on it immediately. If he’s instructing you to do something, do whatever he’s asking. If he’s providing correction, accept it quickly. If he’s warning you against something, stop it immediately.

If it’s straightforward, don’t question it or second guess it or debate it. “Yehovah cannot lie,” (Heb. 6:18), and he will not lead you astray. Accept what he says as truth, and you will save yourself a lot of time and trouble.

Often we may not be clear on what his instruction is, or we may need confirmation. Address this with him right away, ask for clarity, ask for confirmation and watch for that in the days ahead.  I find that not only does Yehovah work in mysterious ways, but he often speaks in mysterious ways. Don’t disregard it because you don’t know what it means. He wants us to seek him out and inquire of him.

Remember Psalm 25:2: “It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out.”

If you have an inkling of something and are not sure what it means, continue seeking him and asking him, and watch for his answer to unfold. Revisit it daily, remind him that you want to know more. He will reward your pursuit of him.

5. Delight Yourself in The Lord

“Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4

I find that this is true both spiritually and also very tangibly. When we delight ourselves in the Lord, our will begins to align with his, and what we desire and what he desires become the same. 

Delighting yourself in the Lord requires that we have a curiosity for him and contentment in him. It’s asking him to reveal more of himself to you, just for the purpose of knowing him deeper. It’s finding new ways to express your love to him. It’s being content to just be alone with him, asking for nothing except his presence. It’s speaking to him and including him throughout your whole day and night, not just in your devotional time. It’s worshiping just for the joy of blessing him. It’s coming under the covering of your prayer shawl and asking him to share his secrets with you. It’s everything you would do with someone you really enjoy being with and want to get to know on a deeper level. This is how he wants us to desire him and delight ourselves in him.

And when we do, he loves to answer us, speak to us, draw closer to us, and delight us with the desires of our heart.  Just as you only share certain things with an acquaintance, but share everything with your best friend, he will share more of himself with you when you include him in all of your life, drawing close to him all day long and watching for his pursuit of you.  He’s likely speaking to you all day long, but unless you are looking for it and recognize his specific communication style with you, you won’t get all that he’s imparting to you. 

I was surprised at how tangible his presence and blessings were as I began delighting myself in him more and more.  Waking me up in the night to enjoy a beautiful moonrise scene out my window that maybe no one else saw.  A well-placed love letter from my deceased husband on my birthday.  A well-timed song that has ministered or spoken to me in the past.  Answering my prayer for help almost before I get it out of my mouth. Pointing me to a previous date in my journal and showing me how that request has now been fulfilled.  I could go on and on with the amazing ways Yehovah finds to fill me up as I delight in him, often even including unspoken desires that I have not prayed for.  

Delighting and desiring speak of going beyond sustenance and need, to a level of enjoyment and indulgence.  This promise is truly a gift from Yehovah that he wants to bless us with if we will just enter in.

Recap

In the end, our relationship with Yehovah is not, and cannot become, a formula to get him to do what we want.  It’s truly a dynamic and responsive relationship, similar to a marriage or friendship.  Cultivating a deeper understanding and desire for Yehovah is the way in which we participate in hearing and advancing his ongoing will in our lives.  There are many ways to do this, what else have you found?

1. Ask God to Prepare You for Your Future
2. Focus on Listening Every Day
3. Daily Confession and Cleansing
4. Obey and Adjust Immediately
5. Delight Yourself in The Lord

Printer Friendly Version