I’ve recently had several conversations with various people about finding God’s will for their lives.  For some it was the, “I’m graduating in May and I don’t know what to do with my life!”.  For others, it was difficult situations that left them feeling like they couldn’t possibly know which decision would make things better.

I remember the feeling of being a senior in high school and hoping that somehow, I would choose the right college…the one God wanted me to choose…it seemed so mysterious, bordering on impossible to really know.  I made it easier on myself by only auditioning at one school…I had been taking french horn lessons with the professor at the Crane School of Music (SUNY Potsdam) during my senoir year, so I just did what seemed obvious, and planned to go to Potsdam State.  I had that tiny thought in the back of my mind, “Am  I missing it?  Should I be looking into different options?”  I went on a missions trip that summer, and one of the other girls on my team was going to Wheaton College.  I came home, two weeks before I was supposed to leave for Potsdam, and told my parents…”I think maybe I should go to Wheaton College instead.”  My mom was a little frustrated, to say the least, and through a series of conversations, quelled the new thought and set my path straight again.  It had been a very spiritual atmosphere on that trip, and I thought that God was answering that tiny thought that had been in the back of my mind with this other option.  Because we all were in a spiritual frame of mind, I thought it just might be God.

I am of the belief at this stage of my life, that it isn’t as hard as I once thought it to be…this hearing from God thing.  As He has opened my eyes to the facet of His sovereignty, I have slowly been able to relax, and trust that He is leading me.  The Scripture that says…”The steps of a righteous man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way.  Thought he fall, he will not be cast down, for the Lord upholds him with His hand.”( Ps 37:23,24) has taken on new meaning for me.  I used to think, that if I was righteous…doing everything just right, that He would speak to me and order my every move whenever I had a question.  Now, I see that I am righteous, all the time, because of the work of the cross, so this verse is always about me.  And, because I am righteous,  the steps I take are indeed ordered by God and part of His plan.  With my old way of thinking, if the path I chose led me into nasty things, I would automatically assume that I had missed His leading.  Now, I look at that second part of that Scripture and realize that sometimes the steps He has me take will cause me to fall, but not to fret.  The path NEVER leads me outside of His hand.  That is my peace.  The pressure is off.  As long as I am surrendered to my Daddy, and not willfully choosing my own way…doing my best to submit my plans to Him, I have full confidence that I am in the middle of His will for me.  My steps are ordered by a sovereign God, and if I am headed for destruction, He will make a donkey talk if He has to, to stop me in my tracks.

He is the Good Shepherd.  I am His sheep.  He is the Architect of my life, and I know that my steps are part of His master plan.

Kent asked me to share about purity, modesty, etc.  So I threw some thoughts and scriptures down in my trusty green notebook, and Derek helped me to organize it all…here are some snippits from it.

When we truly understand our Father’s love for us, and have a true picture of how He views us, we can walk in complete security and confidence in this life, regardless of our upbringing.  And when that revelation sinks deep into our hearts, it will affect us internally, and then externally.

His love will transform us internally…all of the former devices, so to speak, that have developed over time that try to fill that need for love and acceptance, will melt away by the work of His Spirit as we surrender to Him.  If we “awaken love before it’s time” (Song of Songs 3:5), or let the love for a man become our main focus before it is God’s time, our devotion to Christ gets interrupted.  We must surrender this part of our lives to Him…in that place of surrender is where the Spirit works.  As we believe how loved we are, our love for Christ will produce that hidden beauty of the heart that Peter speaks of in I Peter 3:3,4.

“And let not your adornment be merely external-braiding of the hair, and wearing gold jewelry and putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God.”

Knowing His grace and love will change us externally…Our culture has conditioned us from childhood to focus on beauty and romance.  Come on, think about it…have you ever seen an ugly or overweight Disney princess?  And everyone of those tiny-waisted, long-legged girls “find their prince” and live happily ever after.  It is everywhere we look…” if you look like this, you will get a guy like this, and you will be happy.”  Derek and I have very intentionally warned our three girls of this trap.  We want them to be secure because of who they are in Christ, not because they have a pretty face or the right clothes.  SO, if we should not imitate our culture which worships beauty and romance, how do we dress?  Like women in bible times?  Is it time to bust out the drapery and face cloths?  No, but the word says modesty is becoming to a woman of faith.

As we decide what to wear, we should be aware of two things.  First, avoid vanity.  The reference to braided hair and gold jewelry speaks in Bible times of those in royalty, or those in harlotry.   Royalty dressed this way to be vain…to flaunt their wealth and position.  This is obviously a sinful attitude.

Second, the reason for the harlot to dress this way was to allure men.  We as women of faith should never desire to cause our brothers (or unbelieving men for that matter) to stumble over our appearance.  Yet, this is an extremely common way of living for women.  “What can I do to get that second look?”   We need to ask the Lord to help cleanse us of  the contamination of our culture, and to truly desire to please Him first.  And that will cause us to  be the most beautiful women on the planet.

I saw this quote on a sister’s myspace, and I thought it was the perfect summary.

“A woman’s heart should be so lost in God, that a man needs to seek God to find her.”